Dutch minister confident ‘crown jewel’ chip firm ASML will stay in Netherlands after threat to leave

A top Dutch government minister said he's confident the country's coveted chip-equipment maker ASML will remain in the Netherlands following threats from the company to move its operations abroad.

Steven van Weyenberg, the Netherlands' finance minister, told CNBC's Karen Tso on Thursday that he isn't worried by ASML's statements threatening to leave the country. The company has since walked back the comments.

In a January call with investors, ASML CEO Peter Wennink said: "The consequences of limiting labor migration are large, we need those people to innovate. If we can't get those people here, we will go somewhere where we can grow."

His comments followed controversial plans by the Dutch to scale back tax breaks for highly skilled migrants and limit the number of foreigners who can attend Dutch universities.

ASML is core to the world's semiconductor supply chain. The company makes extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUV) machines, which are critical to the semiconductor industry for manufacturing integrated circuits.

EUV machines generate an incredibly short wavelength of light in large quantities to print small, complex designs on microchips. The EUV light is created with tiny explosions of molten tin happening at extreme speeds and then bounced off mirrors that ASML says are the flattest surfaces in the world.

"I think many people, many countries would love to welcome ASML, but I think they're strongly embedded in the Netherlands," Van Weyenberg told CNBC Thursday.

The minster said he had been involved in discussions between the cabinet and ASML last month concerning the firm's plans to grow in the Netherlands and whether there were enough roads, houses and skilled people from abroad to foster that growth.

"I'm very optimistic