EUV Lithography Equipment World No.1 ASML Invests 240 Billion Won in Dongtan

[Asia Economy (Hwaseong) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] The world's largest semiconductor extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography equipment (equipment that engraves circuits on wafers) company, the Netherlands-based ASML, will invest 240 billion KRW in Dongtan, Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province.

On the 18th, Oh Byung-kwon, Acting Governor of Gyeonggi Province, Seo Cheol-mo, Mayor of Hwaseong, Peter Wennink, CEO of ASML, and Lee Woo-kyung, CEO of ASML Korea, signed an investment agreement at ASML Korea in Seokwoo-dong, Hwaseong City, promising investment and regional win-win cooperation including semiconductor talent development.

Earlier in May, ASML announced its investment plan in the province at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's K-Semiconductor Strategy Meeting. At that time, ASML presented a plan to invest 240 billion KRW to create a cluster integrating a parts remanufacturing facility (repair center), an education center (training center), and an experience center.

Accordingly, ASML Korea will move into a cluster with a capacity of 1,500 people, to be built by 2024 on a 16,000㎡ site designated for urban support facilities in Dongtan 2. Along with this, it will expand the operation of the education center to provide training for domestic and international equipment experts, as well as promote semiconductor experience centers, science camps, and industry-academia research support for local students.

In May, the government announced the K-Semiconductor Promotion Strategy and emphasized the importance of attracting cutting-edge technology sectors (lithography, etching, materials) that are difficult to catch up with in the short term, as well as the significance of attracting the ASML training center as part of semiconductor supply chain stabilization measures.

The province and Hwaseong City will actively cooperate in administrative support such as related permits to ensure the successful execution of ASML Korea's investment, and will actively support industry-academia linkage and localization of materials, parts, and equipment.

Since June last year, the province has focused on attracting the global semiconductor industry by establishing an investment policy innovation direction. After obtaining ASML Korea's investment plan in December of the same year, it proposed the Dongtan site in cooperation with Hwaseong City and assisted with early occupancy.

With this investment, ASML Korea is expected to strengthen collaboration with innovative semiconductor companies in the province by expanding the remanufacturing business, a virtuous cycle of parts, to respond to Korea's large-scale semiconductor industry investment.

Acting Governor Oh Byung-kwon said, "Korea's major semiconductor companies are key customers accounting for a significant portion of ASML's sales. This agreement is expected to further activate collaboration with small and medium-sized enterprises related to materials, parts, and equipment in the province with excellent technology, thereby strengthening the roots of our manufacturing industry." He added, "Gyeonggi Province will spare no support to ensure this investment proceeds smoothly."

ASML started in 1984 in Veldhoven, the Netherlands, with about 30 employees and, as of 2021, is the world's largest semiconductor equipment company with 30,000 employees in 16 countries and annual sales of 19 trillion KRW.

ASML Korea has been providing lithography equipment to major domestic comprehensive semiconductor companies through semiconductor equipment engineering services since 1996 in Seokwoo-dong, Hwaseong City. In 2019, it opened a parts repair center (remanufacturing) in Korea. Through this additional investment, it plans to expand the range of remanufactured items as well as the existing education center and regional contribution programs.

Meanwhile, ASML's largest customer is Taiwan's TSMC, the number one foundry semiconductor company, followed by Samsung Electronics. ASML's EUV lithography equipment is cutting-edge equipment priced at a minimum of 200 billion KRW per unit.