SEOUL, March 24 (Reuters) - Chipmaker SK Hynix said on Tuesday it will purchase 11.95 trillion won ($7.97 billion) worth of ASML's EUV lithography tools, used to create chip circuitry, in the largest single order publicly disclosed by an ASML customer.
In a regulatory filing, SK Hynix said it would purchase the tools by December 31, 2027 for use in the mass production of new products. Reuters reported in January that the firm plans to accelerate the opening of a new plant in Yongin city to February 2027 to meet rising demand for memory chips.
Ryu Young-ho, a senior analyst at NH Investment & Securities, said the order would be used both for the Yongin plant and the M15X plant in Cheongju, which will produce high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips needed for artificial intelligence.
"The EUV equipment purchased is therefore expected to be used for both HBM and advanced DRAM," he said.
ASML HAD 38.8 BILLION EURO ORDER BACKLOG AT END OF LAST YEAR
Analyst David Dao of Bernstein estimated the order represents 30 new EUV machines over two years, slightly more than the 26 he had previously forecast.
An ASML spokesperson said the company could not comment on customer business plans. ASML reported a 38.8 billion euro order backlog at the end of 2025.
ASML shares were up 0.9% at 1,185.60 euros by 0822 GMT in Amsterdam. SK Hynix shares closed 5.7% higher after the Korea Economic Daily reported the company could raise up to $10 billion from a U.S. listing.
($1 = 1,500.2100 won)
(Reporting by Jack Kim, Heekyong Yang, Nathan Vifflin, Toby Sterling; Editing by Jacqueline Wong, Bernadette Baum and Jan Harvey)
