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Foundry leader, TSMC has placed an equipment purchase order with ASML worth US$76.447 million on the day the foundry reported capital expenditure plans of US$7.8 billion for 2011. TSMC had noted that it had spent US$1.5 billion on CapEx in the fourth quarter and total CapEx in 2010 of US$5.94 billion.

The new order follows a recent spate of reported purcahses from TSMC that kicked off this year with a combined US$170 million spree. Spending so far this year has reached US$246 million.

TSMC is spending heavy this year as capacity utilization despite new capacity coming online, was fully used throughout 2010. Indeed TSMC noted that due to expected demand full utilization would also occur in 2011.

TSMC expected the foundry market overall to grow approximately 15% in 2011, and that TSMC would grow more than 20% in revenue terms.
CapEx at TSMC is targeting a capacity increase of roughly 20% to about 13.6 million 8-inch equivalent wafers per month.

It is also targeting the 28nm node ramp as some customer products are already taped-out and others are in the prototyping phase. TSMC has said that it expects pilot production later this year and a significant ramp in 2012.

ASML has been the leading-edge lithography supplier to TSMC since inception. Specific details on the lithography equipment ordered were not disclosed.

Recently, ASML expected order bookings in the first quarter to slow after record bookings last year.

Its order backlog ASP value per tool was put as €27.7 million recently, suggesting this order could equate to 3 lithography tools purchased.