Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc. China (“AMEC”) announced today that it has formally filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense (the “DoD”) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for unlawfully designating AMEC as a “Chinese Military Company” (“CMC”).

On January 31, 2024 (EST), the DoD designated AMEC as a CMC, pursuant to Section 1260H of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. AMEC firmly believes that the designation was erroneous, factually incorrect, without legal basis, and in violation of due process, which has had a significantly detrimental impact on AMEC’s reputation.

Since its designation as a CMC, AMEC has made extensive efforts to engage with the DoD in order to clarify the facts, and demonstrate that it does not meet any of the CMC criteria. Furthermore, AMEC has requested that the DoD remove it from the list of CMCs (the “CMC List”). However, as of the date of filing the lawsuit, the DoD has not acted. Therefore, AMEC has no choice but to commence litigation to challenge the DoD’s designation. The aim of the litigation is to eliminate any misunderstandings, safeguard AMEC’s legitimate rights and interests, and protect the interests of AMEC’s shareholders, customers and business partners.

AMEC is a rigorously compliant company and has strictly abided by domestic and international laws and regulations. AMEC has never been involved in any military-related activities. On January 14, 2021 (EST), AMEC was also erroneously designated by the DoD as a Communist Chinese Military Company. Following a petition to the DoD with sufficient facts and evidence, AMEC was successfully removed from that list on June 3, 2021 (U.S. time).

“We are deeply shocked by the designation of AMEC again on the military-related list by the DoD. Such designation was wrong and groundless,” said Dr. Gerald Yin, Chairman and CEO of AMEC. “We believe that the court will make a fair ruling and order AMEC removed from the CMC List. Meanwhile, we are actively working to maintain communication with the DoD in order to properly resolve the dispute.”

About AMEC
AMEC (SSE STAR Market stock code: 688012) is China's leading provider of process technologies, tools and expertise which enable global manufacturers of semiconductors and LEDs achieve their innovation, production, and profit goals. The Company’s etch tools assist chipmakers in building devices for diverse applications at nodes as low as 5nm, while its MOCVD systems lead the market for Blue LED mass production. More than 5000 AMEC process stations, comprising both product lines, have been installed at 130+ leading customer fabs across Asia and Europe. AMEC is headquartered in Shanghai with operations in Nanchang and Xiamen, and regional subsidiaries in the Taiwan region, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, and the United States.