The sale of some high-end semiconductor manufacturing equipment that manufacturer ASML planned to sell to China has been canceled at the request of the US government, Bloomberg reports.
“ASML had a license until this month to ship cutting-edge semiconductor manufacturing machines to China, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources, but U.S. government officials contacted ASML and asked to immediately interrupt deliveries of this equipment.
ASML is a manufacturer of equipment for factories that manufacture semiconductors. Elements necessary for the manufacture of electronic and digital products. The company produces equipment equipped with deep ultraviolet technology (DUV – Deep Ultraviolet Lithography), which is most often used in the semiconductor industry, as well as EUV (extreme ultraviolet) equipment for implementing of semiconductors less than 7 nanometers (nm).
The United States puts pressure on ASML
The United States has banned the Dutch government and ASML from exporting advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China in order to counter China’s strategy to strengthen its semiconductor supply chain. EUV equipment has been on the list since 2019. The US government then decided in March last year to also impose restrictions on the export of high-performance DUV equipment.
In response, ASML said in a statement late last year that it “will not be able to export its latest DUV equipment to China from January 1”, adding that “until this date, we have received authorization from the Dutch government to honor our contracts with Chinese customers.”
However, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan asked the Dutch government late last year to prevent the export of ASML equipment to China, even for the duration of the moratorium. It is unclear how many machine deliveries were canceled as a result of this request.
China is trying its own development, and is also putting up barriers
This measure demonstrates the US government’s desire to firmly enforce restrictions on the export of semiconductors to China. In addition to advanced semiconductor equipment, the US government is currently implementing a number of other measures, including banning AI semiconductor exports and banning investments in China’s AI industry. high technology.
Nevertheless, China remains committed to securing the technology and production capacity of advanced semiconductors. For example, Huawei attracted industry attention last year when it partnered with SMIC, a major local foundry, to commercialize a 7-nanometer mobile application processor (AP).
Furthermore, China is implementing protectionist measures in this sector. At the end of December 2023, it banned the export of certain production technologies using rare earths, materials used in the manufacture of electronic equipment.
Beijing’s measure aims to slow down the development of the sector outside China. The United States is seeking to relocate the production of these strategic metals for defense and the energy transition. China refines 90% of the world’s rare earths.
Source: “ZDNet Korea”