ASML Unveils Hwaseong Campus... Expected to Strengthen South Korea's Semiconductor Competitiveness (Comprehensive)

ASML to Establish New Campus in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi-do
Providing EUV Equipment Maintenance and Training
High NA Mass Production in 2024... Price at 300 Million Euros
CEO Peter Wennink to Meet Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong

Peter Wennink, ASML CEO / Provided by ASML Korea

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Pyeonghwa] ASML, a Dutch semiconductor equipment company known as the 'super Eul (乙)' for its key role in ultra-fine processes, will break ground on the 16th in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, to build a campus including facilities for equipment maintenance and training. This project, with an investment of 240 billion KRW, is ASML's first direct investment in an overseas branch and its largest-scale investment to date. As it announced plans to provide training for the next-generation extreme ultraviolet (EUV) equipment called 'High Numerical Aperture (NA)', it is expected to help enhance the competitiveness of the domestic semiconductor industry.

Strengthening Cooperation with Domestic SMEs at Remanufacturing Center... Potential Expansion of Manufacturing Facilities in the Future

Peter Wennink, CEO of ASML, said at a press conference held on the 15th at InterContinental Seoul COEX, "We made this investment because we need to expand our business in growth industries," adding, "We plan to expand our business in Korea going forward." Given that Korea accounted for 34.46% (6.223 billion euros) of ASML's total sales (18.6 billion euros) last year, this campus is an example of expanding domestic cooperation and related businesses.

Last year, ASML signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Gyeonggi Province and Hwaseong City to establish a new campus. By the end of 2024, ASML plans to invest 240 billion KRW to build a 16,000㎡ campus in Dongtan 2 Urban Support Facility, Hwaseong City, Gyeonggi Province. The detailed facilities include ▲ new headquarters ▲ remanufacturing center (LRC) ▲ global training center ▲ experience center. Lee Woo-kyung, CEO of ASML Korea, said, "This is ASML's first direct investment in an overseas branch and its largest scale," adding, "We will make it an eco-friendly building that does not emit wastewater or exhaust."

At the LRC, ASML plans to carry out maintenance of EUV and deep ultraviolet (DUV) equipment it supplies, as well as domestic production of key parts. If parts can be procured domestically, it will reduce costs and processing time without the need for overseas shipping in case of equipment issues, which is advantageous for the domestic semiconductor industry. It is also expected to increase the profits of related businesses as the proportion of domestically repaired parts rises. CEO Lee explained, "We plan to expand repairs through outsourcing with Korean SMEs at the LRC," adding, "Currently, the share is about 10%, but we aim to increase it to 50%."

The training center will provide comprehensive education not only for ASML Korea but also for customers' EUV and DUV engineers. With a shortage of domestic EUV experts, it is expected that related personnel will be replenished through training. ASML also announced plans to provide training for the next-generation High NA EUV equipment at this center. Through industry-academia cooperation linked with domestic universities, it will also nurture future semiconductor talent. Hwaseong City expects that more than 1,000 personnel will be trained over the next 10 years through this center.

ASML has expressed the possibility that manufacturing facilities for equipment could be established domestically in the future. CEO Wennink said, "Because the business technology is complex, remanufacturing centers must start in any country, and as research and development (R&D) accumulates, it will expand to a manufacturing base," adding, "We are at the starting point in Korea."

Peter Wennink, CEO of ASML (left), and Lee Woo-kyung, CEO of ASML Korea, are conducting a Q&A session with the press at a meeting. / Provided by ASML Korea

High NA Shipment in 2024: "US Sanctions on China Have Limited Impact"

At the press conference, ASML announced plans to increase equipment production in the future. As demand in the semiconductor market continues to grow, ASML intends to enhance productivity and increase supply across its entire equipment lineup. By 2026, it expects to produce 90 EUV units and 600 DUV units annually, and by 2028, 20 High NA EUV units per year.

CEO Wennink explained, "The first High NA EUV is scheduled to be shipped in 2024, and by 2026-2027, major customers are expected to use it for mass production," adding, "The equipment price is estimated at 300 million euros (about 408.1 billion KRW), though some analyst reports predict up to 350 million euros (about 476.3 billion KRW)."

ASML, headquartered in the Netherlands, monopolizes the supply of EUV equipment. EUV equipment is used in the photolithography process to draw fine electronic circuits on semiconductor wafers. It is essential for ultra-fine processes below 7 nanometers (nm; 1 nm = one-billionth of a meter), so securing EUV equipment is considered critical for business competitiveness. Since only about 60 units are produced annually, major semiconductor companies worldwide, including Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, are competing to acquire EUV equipment from ASML.

In the business community, it is anticipated that CEO Wennink will meet Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong during this visit to Korea. CEO Wennink also left open the possibility of such a meeting at the press conference. He previously met Chairman Lee twice, in 2020 and June this year. Attention is focused on whether discussions regarding High NA supply will take place during this meeting. High NA is an advanced lithography equipment applicable to processes below 3 nm, and Samsung Electronics began mass production of the 3 nm process using the gate-all-around (GAA) method in foundry this year.

Meanwhile, ASML stated that the impact of US semiconductor sanctions on China is not significant. CEO Wennink said, "Among the US companies we cooperate with, some cannot ship equipment to China, but the direct impact is minimal," adding, "Indirectly, since equipment is shipped in integrated states, we also cannot ship some equipment, so about 5% of our sales are expected to be affected."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.