Physix FrontierPhysix Frontier · News Briefing Card (IT Home · Sep 22, 2026)
ASML Executive Says Zero Lithography Sales in Europe
KEY FACTS
- ASML executive Jim Hemskerk said at an event in Amsterdam that the company cannot sell a single machine in Europe.
- Hemskerk attributed this to a lack of local investment in Europe, with no new chip factories being built there.
- The EU is revising the European Chips Act, which took effect in 2023 but has not effectively driven wafer fab investment.
- EU auditors pointed out last year that Europe is unlikely to meet its goal of doubling its share of the domestic chip market by 2030.
- Hemskerk said the US, China, and India are all courting ASML to expand its local footprint, with China and India offering high-level incentives.
KEY DATA
0%ASML Q2 Europe system net sales share
1%2025 Europe, Middle East and Africa system sales share
one quarterShare of ASML R&D work in the US
halfUS desired share of ASML R&D in the US
PHYSIX OBSERVATION
The inability to sell lithography machines is not ASML's problem, but rather that Europe has no new fabs to sell to. The Chips Act has been touted for three years, yet the money has not gone into building factories, so demand naturally fails to pick up. As the US, China, and India compete for capacity with subsidies and red-carpet treatment, if Europe continues to issue only policies without funding, what gets left behind is not just manufacturing, but the say of the entire supply chain.
Source: IT Home report