According to foreign media reports, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said last week, in deciding whether to further tighten the regulations on exports of ASML computer chip manufacturing equipment to China, the Dutch government will take into account the economic interests of ASML.
Responding to questions about possible further restrictions on ASML’s exports to China, Schoof said, “We are in consultation, good consultation, but also pay special attention to ASML’s economic interests. Those interests need to be weighed against other risks, and the economic interests are extremely important.”
He also added that “ASML is an extremely important and innovative industry for the Netherlands and should not be affected under any circumstances that would jeopardize ASML’s global position.”
The Dutch government has previously mandated that ASML’s high-end products must be licensed.
It was recently reported that ASML’s license to supply services and spare parts in China will expire at the end of this year, at which time the Dutch government may not renew some of the licenses. The business to China is said to have accounted for about 49% of ASML’s second-quarter lithography system sales, which exceeded 2 billion euros.
ASML CEO Christophe Fouquet said ASML has been restricted from selling most of its advanced product lines in China, and the company is also facing limitations in providing after-sales service for existing equipment at some of its plants in China due to U.S. and European regulations.
Roger Dassen, ASML’s chief financial officer, revealed that about 20 percent of ASML’s current order backlog is destined for China, and given the growing global demand for legacy chips, if these products are not sold in China, they may be sold elsewhere.
After previous rounds of restrictions, Chinese chipmakers are buying mostly ASML’s old equipment, which is not subject to export restrictions and is used to make “traditional” chips that are important in global industrial manufacturing.