Owners of last residential home in ASML's Eindhoven expansion area agree to sell
The two sisters who own the only residential home left in the area of Eindhoven where ASML is expanding have reached an agreement with the municipality to sell it, AD reports based on information sent to the Eindhoven city council this week. The city is still negotiating with the owners of eight other plots.
The two sisters from Best and Eindhoven inherited the home from their parents. It’s located on Dirk Noordhoflaan, right in the heart of the area where ASML plans to build cleanrooms and offices this year. The municipality did not disclose how much it paid for the sisters’ property, because the transfer still needs to take place.
The sisters also declined to comment to AD, but a LinkedIn post from two months ago shows that they were quite annoyed with the municipality. They wrote that they understand they’ll have to sell their family home and understand ASML’s importance for the region. But they feel the municipality could have handled the situation better.
“What really bothers us is the way the municipality of Eindhoven has shaped the process for us,” they wrote, according to the newspaper. “As a private owner, you quickly find yourself sidelined, and the communication feels impersonal and bureaucratic, with noticeable pressure. As a result, the process risks resembling a power struggle rather than a careful collaboration, and that is disappointing, especially with a project of this size and significance.”
According to AD, other property owners have expressed similar frustrations, reporting “disproportionate pressure” to sell their land. The newspaper wrote that several land owners have enlisted a “very experienced” advisor who promised to “significantly” increase the selling price, showing that the municipality may not be the only source of frustration in these transactions.
The Eindhoven city council will decide on ASML’s zoning plan on March 10th, during the last city council meeting before the municipal elections. The option to expropriate the required land will also be on the agenda in that meeting.
ASML’s expansion plans involve doubling its local workforce with 20,000 new employees. This led trade unions to criticize the chip machine maker when it unexpectedly announced some 1,700 layoffs with its annual results last month.
