US warns ASML a top EUV chip tool may have reached China

Lutnick raised concerns in recent meetings that an ASML EUV lithography system may have been transferred to China, violating export controls, Bloomberg reported.moneycontrol+1
ASML denied the claim, circulating a document showing all 314 active EUV machines are accounted for and none are in China.moneycontrol
U.S. officials say they have evidence ASML shipped EUV transport equipment and components to China, which the company also denies.moneycontrol

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has raised concerns directly with senior leaders at ASML that one of the Dutch company's extreme ultraviolet lithography machines — the most advanced chipmaking tools in existence — may have made its way into China in violation of U.S.-led export restrictions, according to a report by Bloomberg News.moneycontrol+1

The allegation marks the most direct confrontation yet between the Trump administration and the semiconductor equipment maker, which holds a monopoly on EUV technology essential for producing the world's most advanced chips.

ASML Pushes Back

ASML has strongly denied the claim. After a meeting with Lutnick in April, the company created and circulated in Washington a document titled "No indication of any ASML EUV System in China," according to the Bloomberg report. The document states there are 314 EUV machines in operation globally, with 26 decommissioned — and none in China.moneycontrol

"ASML has never shipped an EUV machine to China nor have we shipped to China any component, module or equipment specially designed to be used in an EUV machine," a company spokesperson told Bloomberg.moneycontrol

The company has also noted that its EUV systems are the size of a school bus, are manufactured in limited quantities, and require constant maintenance from ASML employees — making covert transfers difficult to conceal.moneycontrol

US Claims Sensitive Evidence

Multiple senior administration officials told Bloomberg they have evidence that ASML shipped specialty equipment used to transport EUV machines to China, as well as other components that could be used in EUV systems. However, officials described the proof as too sensitive to disclose publicly.investing+1

The officials said the evidence suggests ASML "is not acting in good faith," though the company denied exporting any EUV-related gear to China.moneycontrol

The dispute comes as Congress pushes for even tighter restrictions on ASML's exports. The bipartisan MATCH Act, proposed earlier this year, would prohibit the export of ASML's less advanced deep ultraviolet lithography machines, which Chinese chipmakers can still purchase to produce older-generation semiconductors. ASML has for years faced increasing limits on its business in China as the U.S. has pressed the Netherlands and Japan to stem flows of chip production equipment to a geopolitical rival.cnbc+2

Sources (25)