According to an exclusive report by the Dutch authoritative ** Telegraph on March 6, ASML (ASML), a giant in the lithography machine industry, is considering moving out of the country due to the anti-immigration policy tendencies of the Netherlands. As soon as this news was revealed, the Netherlands** immediately reacted by setting up a special task force "Beethoven Plan", led by Prime Minister Mark Rutte himself, in an effort to prevent this potentially major change.
It is reported that ASML has conveyed its intention to move or expand to the Netherlands**, and France has become its potential next stop. ASML's headquarters in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, has always been the center of its global operations, but today it is facing unprecedented challenges.
Last November, the Dutch parliamentary elections were shocking, with the far-right populist Wilders' Freedom Party winning a landslide, and its hard-line anti-immigration policies had a significant impact on the country's business environment. Wilders even publicly stated that if elected prime minister, he would vigorously limit the number of overseas students and tax breaks for expatriates, a statement that undoubtedly heightened concerns about companies that rely on foreign labor such as ASML.
40% of ASML's employees in the Netherlands are non-Dutch employees, many of whom are international students who are part of the company's core workforce. As a result, CEO Wennink has repeatedly warned that restricting labor migration will have a huge impact on the company and may even force the company to find new space to grow.
In addition, the housing shortage in the Netherlands has exacerbated ASML's predicament. As the company grows, so does the demand for housing, but housing in the Netherlands** struggles to meet this demand, which is an important factor for the company to consider relocating.
An ASML spokesperson did not respond directly to the report, saying only that the company was looking for growth and had received many questions about expansion. In an interview, Dutch Economy Minister Adriansens did not give a clear response to the content of the report, but said that he was in intensive dialogue with ASML to try to solve the problems faced by the company.
As the only company in the world that can offer state-of-the-art lithography machines, the relocation or expansion of ASML will undoubtedly have a profound impact on the business environment in the Netherlands and around the world. Especially in the context of the intensification of "chip competition" between China and the United States, ASML's strategic position has become more prominent. Therefore, the establishment of a task force by the Netherlands** to try to retain this important company also shows that it attaches great importance to maintaining the country's business environment.