According to foreign media reports, ASML, the leader of the semiconductor equipment industry in the Netherlands, plans to start the construction of a remanufacturing factory and training center in South Korea on November 16. Peter Wennenk, the CEO of ASML, said that he will invest at least 240 billion won to cooperate with local customers such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, and plans to complete the construction in 2024.
In November 2021, ASML signed a memorandum with Huacheng, South Korea, planning to invest 240 billion won in South Korea to build a photolithography equipment remanufacturing factory and training center, which is mainly used to provide assistance for the maintenance and upgrading of EUV photolithography machines operated locally in South Korea.
As for the production expansion plan of semiconductor equipment, Peter Wenlink said on November 15 that the new High NA EUV lithography equipment is expected to be shipped in 2024 and will be used in the wafer factory for the first time, with a single unit cost of 300 million to 350 million euros.
The data shows that the High NA EUV system will provide 0.55 numerical aperture. Compared with the EUV of 0.33 numerical aperture lens, it has higher precision and higher resolution imaging ability to complete smaller transistors. It is necessary for the process below 2 nanometers.
On the customer side, although the price is high, ASML still received the first order of the latest High NA EUV "EXE: 5200" from Intel at the beginning of this year. It is expected that the device will be added to mass production by 2025. In addition to Intel, TSMC has also placed an order. Samsung and SK Hynix, though not publicly confirmed, also issued orders to ASML. From the current demand, ASML's annual output of 20 units may be in short supply, so chip factories may compete fiercely to obtain equipment first.
Previously, ASML said that it planned to further increase the production capacity from 2025 to 2026, including the annual production of 90 EUV (extreme ultraviolet light) lithographers and 600 DUV (deep ultraviolet light) lithographers. At the same time, from 2027 to 2028, it will increase the production of 20 systems of high NA EUV lithographers.
Wennenk pointed out that the High NA EUV equipment will be used in the wafer factory for the first time in 2024, and the long-term plan is to produce 20 units per year.
When asked about the global chip market, Wennink believed that although the short-term downturn continues, the market will only grow in the medium and long term. It is estimated that the semiconductor market will grow by 9% annually in the next 10 years, and the output value will fall to 1 trillion to 1.3 trillion dollars in 2030. It said that with the increasing global demand for advanced chips, the company may conduct mergers and acquisitions.