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A SMIC company logo is seen at a factory in Shanghai. Photo: EPA

US tightens exports to China’s biggest chip maker SMIC, citing risk of military use

  • US companies may now need to get licences to ship certain goods to SMIC for its purported links to the Chinese military
  • The company said it had not received any official notice of the restrictions and has denied having any military ties
The United States has imposed restrictions on exports to China’s biggest chip maker SMIC after concluding there is an “unacceptable risk” equipment supplied to it could be used for military purposes.

Suppliers of certain equipment to Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation will now have to apply for individual export licences, according to a letter from the Commerce Department dated Friday and seen by Reuters.

The latest move marks a shift in US policy from earlier this year, when applicants seeking “military end user” licences to sell to SMIC were told by the Commerce Department that the licences were not necessary, according to three people familiar with the matter.

SMIC said it had not received any official notice of the restrictions and said it has no ties with the Chinese military.

US threat to target SMIC risks undermining drive to boost domestic tech sector

“SMIC reiterates that it manufactures semiconductors and provides services solely for civilian and commercial end users and end-uses,” SMIC said.

“The Company has no relationship with the Chinese military and does not manufacture for any military end users or end-uses.”
SMIC is the latest leading Chinese technology company to face US trade restrictions related to national security issues or US foreign policy efforts. Telecoms giant Huawei Technologies had its access to high-end chips curtailed by its addition to a Commerce Department blacklist known as the entity list.

SMIC’s new designation is not as severe as being blacklisted, which makes it difficult to get any export licence approved.

Chip maker SMIC applies to renew licence to supply Huawei: state media

The Pentagon earlier this month said it was working with other agencies to determine whether to blacklist SMIC for its purported links to the Chinese military.

US companies including Lam Research, KLA Corp and Applied Materials, which supply chip-making equipment, may now need to get licences to ship certain goods to SMIC.

It is unclear which suppliers received the letter, but typically once the Commerce Department comes to the conclusion that there is a risk of military use or diversion, it sends that information to the companies.

The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security declined on Saturday to comment specifically on SMIC, but said it was “constantly monitoring and assessing any potential threats to US national security and foreign policy interests”.

The administration has increasingly trained its focus on Chinese companies that bolster Beijing’s military. Last month, the US blacklisted 24 Chinese companies and targeted people it said were part of construction and military actions in the South China Sea, its first such sanctions against Beijing over the disputed strategic waterway.
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