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Yoon, flanked by Samsung and SK chiefs, pledges support for chip cooperation in visit to ASML

Published: 13 Dec. 2023, 02:12 Updated: 13 Dec. 2023, 09:42

SARAH KIM
[email protected]

President Yoon Suk Yeol, center, joined by executives of Korea's top chipmakers, visits Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML's cleanroom at its global headquarters in Veldhoven in the Netherlands on Tuesday. From left, Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Dutch King Willem-Alexander, Yoon, ASML Chief Executive Peter Wennink and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

President Yoon Suk Yeol, accompanied by executives of Korea's top chipmakers, visited leading Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML's global headquarters in Veldhoven in the Netherlands with King Willem-Alexander on Tuesday afternoon.

Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won took part in the trip to ASML, highlighting the two countries' growing semiconductor partnership.

Yoon and Willem-Alexander toured the "cleanroom" facility at ASML and viewed the next-generation extreme ultraviolet (EUV) equipment production site, according to the presidential office. They signed wafers that will be displayed at the ASML headquarters.

Yoon is the first foreign leader to be shown around the cleanroom, where ASML's machines are produced. They were greeted by ASML Chief Executive Peter Wennink, whom Yoon met with twice before, including in July in Seoul.

This visit to ASML is especially significant as the Dutch multinational corporation provides advanced chip manufacturing equipment to Korea's biggest chipmakers, Samsung Electronics and SK hynix. ASML's lithography machine based on EUV is needed to produce high-performing processors that power high-end smartphones and supercomputers.

Yoon and Willem-Alexander took part in a Korea-Netherlands semiconductor business dialogue at ASML, involving executives of Korean and European semiconductor companies and institutions. The dialogue was attended by representatives from Samsung Electronics, SK hynix, ASM, a Dutch company specializing in producing semiconductor devices for wafer processing, German imaging company Zeiss and IMEC, a Belgian semiconductor research institute, according to the presidential office.

"The technological innovation led by ASML is becoming a powerful driving force of the fourth industrial revolution around the world," Yoon said. "We are grateful that Dutch semiconductor companies such as ASML and ASM have expanded their investments in Korea by building new facilities for production, research and development and training talent."

Yoon said he hopes to strengthen the Korea-Netherlands chip alliance through this visit, adding he will work towards "strengthening direct communication between the two governments and provide all necessary support for the success of semiconductor cooperation projects by Korean and Dutch companies."

President Yoon Suk Yeol, second from left, and Dutch King Willem-Alexander, center, take part in an MOU signing ceremony for a cutting-edge semiconductor partnership between Korea and the Netherlands. From left, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, Yoon, Willem-Alexander, Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and ASML Chief Executive Peter Wennink. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Yoon and Willem-Alexander took part in a signing ceremony as Korea and the Netherlands sealed three memoranda of understanding (MOU) for cooperation in the semiconductor field.

The two sides agreed to establish a Korean-Dutch academy for cutting-edge semiconductor technology led by ASML, which is set to launch in February next year, enabling engineering students of both countries to cooperate.

Samsung Electronics and ASML will invest one trillion won ($762 million) in a joint research center in Korea dedicated to ultrafine semiconductor manufacturing processes utilizing next-generation EUV lithography machines, including the newest high-NA system. SK hynix and ASML also agreed to work on hydrogen recycling technology to enhance the energy efficiency of EUVs.

The Korean government "plans to spare no effort in providing support to ensure that the MOUs between the government and the private sector signed during this ASML visit is implemented without a hitch," the presidential office said in a statement.

This visit is a part of efforts to give Korean companies with semiconductor manufacturing technology an edge amid fierce competition among global chip companies in Taiwan and the United States.

The Netherlands is a key player in stabilizing the semiconductor supply chain amid the technological hegemonic struggle between the United States and China.

Korea accounts for about 60 percent of the world's supply of memory chips.

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, is greeted by ASML CEO Peter Wennink, right, during a visit to ASML's global headquarters in Veldhoven during Yoon's state visit to the Netherlands Tuesday. [EPA/YONHAP]

Yoon arrived in the Netherlands for a five-day trip on Monday, becoming the first Korean president to make a state visit to the Netherlands since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1961.

Yoon and first lady Kim Keon Hee were received in an official welcome ceremony by Willem-Alexander and his wife, Queen Maxima, in Dam Square in Amsterdam earlier Tuesday.

Yoon later laid a wreath at a national monument in Dam Square dedicated to World War II victims and held a private luncheon with the king and queen. They were set to attend a state dinner at the Royal Palace in Amsterdam in the evening.

BY SARAH KIM [[email protected]]