Intel Orders ASML Machine Still on Drawing Board as Chipmakers Look For an Edge

The Intel Corporation logo is seen on a display in a store in Manhattan, New York City, November 24, 2021. (Reuters)
The Intel Corporation logo is seen on a display in a store in Manhattan, New York City, November 24, 2021. (Reuters)
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Intel Orders ASML Machine Still on Drawing Board as Chipmakers Look For an Edge

The Intel Corporation logo is seen on a display in a store in Manhattan, New York City, November 24, 2021. (Reuters)
The Intel Corporation logo is seen on a display in a store in Manhattan, New York City, November 24, 2021. (Reuters)

Intel has placed the first order with ASML for an advanced chipmaking machine that is still on the drawing board and won't be delivered for years, as semiconductor manufacturers look to get ahead in a booming industry.

Alongside better-than-expected fourth quarter earnings, ASML said on Wednesday it had now received orders for five of its next generation of lithography machines, plus an order for the even newer model that is still being designed.

In a separate joint press release, the companies said Intel was the buyer.

ASML's most advanced commercial machines, known as EUV lithography systems because of the "Extreme Ultraviolet" light waves they use to map out the circuitry of computer chips, are the size of a bus and cost around $150 million each.

A cutting-edge chip plant needs 9-18 of them, making them one of chipmakers' biggest capital expenditure costs.

ASML is the only maker of such machines and its EUV customers include the world's biggest chipmakers, TSMC of Taiwan, Samsung of South Korea and Intel, among others.

ASML said it had now received orders for five of the next iteration of the system, known as "High NA" EUV machines, which will have a different lens system with a higher numerical aperture, will be even larger and cost around $300 million each.

The first prototypes are to be shipped in 2023. They are not expected to be used in volume manufacturing until 2025.

Intel, which is trying to win back its position as maker of the smallest and fastest chips from current leader TSMC, had previously identified itself as the first buyer of a High NA machine, ASML's EXE:5000, which is expected to help manufacturers shrink chip sizes later this decade.

Intel said on Wednesday it would buy the first EXE:5200 as well, which is expected to make several improvements including higher productivity. Neither company mentioned the price tag.



Samsung Expects a 56% Drop in Q2 Operating Profit, Far Short of Estimates

The logo of Samsung Electronics is seen at its headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, on July 4, 2016. (Reuters)
The logo of Samsung Electronics is seen at its headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, on July 4, 2016. (Reuters)
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Samsung Expects a 56% Drop in Q2 Operating Profit, Far Short of Estimates

The logo of Samsung Electronics is seen at its headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, on July 4, 2016. (Reuters)
The logo of Samsung Electronics is seen at its headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, on July 4, 2016. (Reuters)

Samsung Electronics on Tuesday projected a 56% drop in second-quarter operating profit from a year earlier, missing analysts' estimates by far.

Its chip business struggled with weak sales of artificial intelligence chips, dogged by delays in the supply of its latest chips to Nvidia and continued losses in its contract chip manufacturing business, analysts said.

The world's largest memory chipmaker estimated an operating profit of 4.6 trillion won for the April-June period, versus a 6.2 trillion won LSEG SmartEstimate.

That would compare with 10.4 trillion won in the same period a year earlier and 6.7 trillion won in the preceding quarter.

Revenue would likely fall 0.1% to 74 trillion won from a year earlier, the filing showed.

Samsung is expected to release detailed results, including a breakdown of earnings for each of its businesses, in late July.