China has another four months of importing chip manufacturing machines from ASML
Chinese chipmakers can import DUV lithography machines from ASML until the end of this year, after receiving approval from the Netherlands.
ASML on September 1 said that, from January 1, 2024, the company will not be able to sell the Twinscan NXT:2000i model to Chinese companies. Twinscan NXT:2000i currently uses embedded lithography (DUV) technology, but is the product with the highest compatibility with other machines using the most advanced ultraviolet lithography (EUV) technology available today . This is also a device that Chinese chip companies want to own in the process of semiconductor autonomy.
"Under the new export control regulations, we can sell the system until the end of this year," ASML said.
An ASML engineer operates a lithography machine in Veldhoven, Netherlands, June 16. Photo: Reuters
Previously, on June 30, the Dutch government said it would require domestic companies to apply for a permit if they want to sell chip-making equipment abroad. The regulation took effect from September 1, and the most mentioned business is ASML , while the most affected country is China.
Under this ban, systems capable of producing chips at a process below 10 nm will not be exported to other countries unless authorized by the Netherlands. Meanwhile, other DUV machines with processes above 10 nm such as Twinscan NXT:1980i or Twinscan NXT:1980Di are not controlled, but they are not enough for China's semiconductor autonomy ambitions.
ASML's products play a central role in the geopolitical competition between the US and China. The US government put pressure on the Netherlands to prevent the country from issuing the necessary export license for ASML to transfer photolithography machines to Chinese customers.
ASML has been banned from selling EUV machines to China since 2019. The Dutch company still exports DUVs, but will be restricted from the end of this year. Observers evaluate the new move of the Netherlands as a loosening action to give Chinese companies more time to prepare.
A CEO in the semiconductor industry said that in recent times, Beijing has continuously promoted the use of domestic production tools, but the localization rate in chip foundries currently accounts for only 15%. The remaining 85% of machines come from the US, the Netherlands and Japan.
Meanwhile, China Customs data shows that the country's imports of chip manufacturing tools in June and July totaled nearly 5 billion USD, up 70% from 2.9 billion USD in the same period. last year. "This is one of China's responses to the restricted context," Lucy Chen, vice president of research firm Isaiah Research, told the FT . "China has increased its inventory of semiconductor equipment to minimize the potential risk of shortages in the supply chain."
Bao Lam (according to SCMP, FT )
Chinese semiconductor 'gold ring' 204
China urges Japan to stop restricting chip exports 50
China's semiconductor ambitions face obstacles again 51
ASML Confirms China Semiconductor Restriction Agreement 144
The Netherlands rejects the US on Chinese semiconductor restrictions 112