China stockpiled 343 immersion DUV lithography tools to circumvent EUV export restrictions and sustain advanced semiconductor manufacturing.

Chinese semiconductor manufacturers have accumulated an estimated 343 immersion deep-ultraviolet lithography scanners since 2012, according to a report from the Centre for Technology & Statecraft released this week. This inventory provides substantial capacity to produce advanced processors despite being cut off from ASML's extreme-ultraviolet systems.

The stockpile includes 270 ASML Twinscan NXT:1980i scanners with 38-nanometer resolution and 2.5-nanometer matched-machine overlay — specifications that enable the multipatterning techniques required for 7nm-class process nodes. CTS also counts 22 NXT:2050i and six NXT:2000i systems among the total.

Export controls leave a critical gap: lithography equipment originally purchased for less advanced nodes can be reassigned to more sophisticated production, albeit at higher cost and lower yield. "The existing export controls leave an important gap because lithography equipment originally acquired for less advanced process technologies can potentially be reassigned for more sophisticated process technologies," the CTS report states. The group recommends prohibiting all immersion DUV exports to China and restricting replacement components and maintenance services for machines installed at advanced fabs — a position aligned with the bipartisan MATCH Act introduced in Congress in April.

Dutch authorities imposed licensing requirements for NXT:2000i and more capable immersion DUV scanners in September 2023, effectively blocking their shipment to China. Chinese buyers then shifted to the less capable NXT:1980i. CTS estimates Chinese fabs purchased approximately 90 NXT:1980i units in 2024 and another 89 in 2025, spending more than $13 billion over the two-year period. The Netherlands expanded controls to the NXT:1980i in September 2024, though individual export licenses can still be granted. ASML's older NXT:1965Ci systems also remain potentially available.

ASML's financial disclosures reflect the surge. China accounted for 41% of the company's net system sales by shipment destination in 2024 and 33% in 2025, falling to 19% in the first quarter of 2026 and 14% in the second quarter — a decline ASML had previously signaled.

The CTS figures cannot be independently verified from ASML's public filings. ASML reported selling 129 and 131 ArFi immersion systems globally in 2024 and 2025 respectively. If CTS's numbers are accurate, Chinese buyers absorbed roughly 70% and 68% of global immersion DUV output during those years despite tightening controls. Older NXT:1980Di systems also circulate on the secondary market, providing an additional procurement channel.

The report underscores a persistent challenge for export-control regimes: restricting cutting-edge tools does not immediately eliminate the ability to manufacture advanced chips when existing installed bases can be repurposed through multipatterning — a technique the industry adopted for 7nm production in 2018–2019 before EUV became widely available.