On Wednesday, October 14, 2026, Dutch chip equipment giant ASML announced that there is strong demand from customers for chip lithography equipment. The company’s planned production capacity for 2027 and 2028 cannot fully meet customer demand, so they are currently considering ways to further increase capacity. ASML also raised the lower end of its full-year sales expectations, projecting a net sales revenue between 44 billion to 45 billion euros for the year.
According to Reuters, ASML, the world’s largest chip manufacturing equipment supplier, revealed that customers have started negotiating orders for the years after 2027. Some companies have even expressed interest in procuring equipment for the years 2029 and 2030.
ASML CEO Christophe Fouquet stated, “Many of our current discussions with customers are now focusing on the period beyond 2027.”
ASML’s key customers include TSMC, Samsung, SK Hynix, Micron, and Intel. Elon Musk’s planned Terafab is also a potential new customer for ASML, and all these companies have expansion plans in place.
In July of this year, ASML announced plans to increase production capacity by 30% in 2027 and is considering another 30% increase in 2028. However, Fouquet noted that even with these expansions, meeting customer demand remains challenging due to a significant influx of orders for 2028 and strong intentions from some clients for equipment in the years 2029 to 2030. As a result, ASML is exploring further capacity increases beyond the previously stated 30% expansion for 2028.
In September, ASML initiated a large-scale expansion project in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, but the company will need to seek other methods to address the capacity gap until the completion of the first phase of the project in 2029.
During the company’s earnings release, ASML’s CFO Roger Dassen mentioned that to address supply shortages, ASML will upgrade existing equipment and sell new versions with higher output rates, stating that “these methods combined can significantly increase equipment capacity.”
ASML forecasts a fourth-quarter sales revenue of 14.2 to 15.2 billion euros in 2026, with a gross margin of approximately 57%. The annual gross margin is estimated at 56%, previously forecasted to be between 54% and 56%. The company has also adjusted its full-year net sales revenue expectation to be between 44 billion to 45 billion euros.
Furthermore, ASML reported a third-quarter net profit of 4.96 billion euros, net sales revenue of 11.66 billion euros, and a gross margin of 57.5%. While its earnings exceeded market expectations, the revenue slightly fell short of the forecasted 11.72 billion euros by analysts surveyed by the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). LSEG analysts had initially projected ASML’s fourth-quarter sales to reach 14.19 billion euros.
According to Reuters, Marc Hesselink, an analyst at the Dutch international group ING, mentioned that ASML’s profits have surpassed market expectations, indicating a potential upward revision in market forecasts for the company’s profits until 2028.
Ben Barringer, the technical research director at UK’s wealth management firm Quilter Cheviot, believes that “ASML’s growth is expected to continue into 2027 and 2028. However, the market is also watching for signs of slowing demand post-2029 and its impact on ASML.”