ASML explores capacity expansion beyond 30% increase for 2028

Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML said on Wednesday that it is exploring ways to expand production capacity beyond the previously announced 30% increase planned for 2028, as growing investment in artificial intelligence (AI) drives stronger demand for its equipment.

ASML President and Chief Executive Officer Christophe Fouquet said in a statement that customers continue to raise their short- and medium-term equipment demand forecasts, driven primarily by their expectations for the scale and duration of AI-related investment.

Given the improved visibility into future demand, some customers are expressing interest in placing orders for 2029 and even 2030.

"With such strong visibility and an order book momentum that continues to increase quarter on quarter this year, we now expect that our supply as currently planned for both 2027 and 2028 will not fully meet the demand of our customers," Fouquet said.

"So we have to do more, and we are looking basically at ways, especially in 2028 and beyond, to further extend our capacity," he added.

ASML reported total net sales of 11.7 billion euros (about $13.09 billion) in the third quarter of 2026, up 25% from the previous quarter.

Net income reached nearly 5 billion euros in the third quarter.

The company expected full-year 2026 net sales of between 44 billion and 45 billion euros, with a gross margin of around 56%, Fouquet announced.

On September 8, ASML began construction of its second major industrial campus in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, as it expanded its manufacturing capacity to meet growing demand from the global semiconductor industry.