Source: Huaqiang Microelectronics Author: June
Today, according to previous news from the Financial Associated Press, the U.S. SWB Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has re-escalated its unreasonable suppression of China’s chip industry on the grounds of so-called safeguarding GJ security, specifically involving 9 new regulations, including some advanced , adding high-performance computer chips and computer commodities containing such chips to the commercial control list, adding new licensing requirements for supercomputers or semiconductor development and production applications for end-use in China, adding certain semiconductor manufacturing equipment and related Items added to the commercial control list, new license requirements for advanced chip production facilities such as non-planar transistor structure logic chips below 16nm or NAND flash memory chips above 128 layers in China, etc.
In fact, before this, the US government has issued several bans and bills in the chip field, including the “Chip and Science Act” and restricting related companies from exporting high-performance GPUs to China. However, this time the export control restrictions are more extensive and may have a greater impact.
According to public information, the relevant rules are as follows:
1. Add certain advanced and high-performance computing chips and computer products containing such chips to the Commercial Control List (CCL);
2. Add new licensing requirements for projects that develop or produce end-use supercomputers or semiconductors in China;
3. Extend the application of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to certain foreign-produced advanced computer products and foreign-produced supercomputer end-use products;
4. Expand the scope of production projects in countries outside the United States that require a license to 28 existing entities located in China;
5. Add certain semiconductor manufacturing equipment and related items to CCL;
6. Add new licensing requirements for equipment manufactured in China in compliant semiconductor manufacturing plants. Facility licenses owned by Chinese companies will face “presumptive refusal”, and company-owned facilities will make decisions on a case-by-case basis, specifically covering: Logic chips with non-planar transistor structures (FinFET or GAAFET) with 16nm or below process; DRAM memory chips with a half-pitch not exceeding 18nm; NAND flash memory chips with 128 or more layers;
7. Restrict U.S. entities from supporting the manufacture, development, or production of certain semiconductor factories in China without a license;
8. Add new license requirements for export projects that develop or produce semiconductor manufacturing equipment and related projects;
9. Establish a Temporary General License (TGL) to minimize short-term impact on the semiconductor supply chain by allowing specific, limited production activities.
It is reported that the above-mentioned restrictions on semiconductor manufacturing projects will take effect on October 7, and restrictions on the ability of Americans to support the development, production or application of integrated circuits based on domestic semiconductor manufacturing “facility” in China will take effect on October Advanced computing and The supercomputer controls, along with other updates in the rules, will go into effect on October 21.
The updated export controls will target Chinese companies in a number of ways, including restricting U.S. companies from exporting critical chip-making tools to China and restricting U.S. citizens and companies from providing any form of direct or indirect support to Chinese semiconductor manufacturing plants.
Post time: Oct-10-2022