THE HAGUE, March 6 (Reuters) - The Dutch government is

talking with semiconductor equipment maker ASML to

ensure that the Netherlands' largest company does not move to

another country, or expand abroad, due to anti-immigration

policies, the economy minister said.

The news was first reported by newspaper De Telegraaf, which

cited anonymous sources and said the ministries involved had

dubbed the effort "Operation Beethoven".

Economic Affairs Minister Micky Adriaansens would not

address all aspects of the paper's report but in an interview

with Reuters she confirmed that she was meeting ASML CEO Peter

Wennink in The Hague on Wednesday as part of what she said were

ongoing talks.

"I don't know if they would leave" the Netherlands, she

said. "They want to grow. And they want to grow in such an

amount, it puts a pressure on our infrastructure."

"That's why we're talking to them very intensively. Because

we want to understand, is it something we can solve?"

The report follows comments made by ASML CEO Peter Wennink

in January when he warned that his company was highly reliant on

skilled foreign labour, after anti-immigration parties booked

big gains in 2023 elections.

ASML declined to comment on Wednesday. However, Wennink

spoke at an event in The Hague and said he was concerned the

business climate in the Netherlands was worsening.

"Some of these elements that made us a great company, those

elements are under pressure," he said, citing increasing

regulation and a plan to scrap a tax break given to highly

skilled immigrants.

POTENTIAL CURBS ON FOREIGN STUDENTS

Around 40% of ASML's 23,000 employees in the Netherlands are

not Dutch. Europe's largest tech company sources parts from

around the globe but currently assembles its machines in

Veldhoven, Netherlands before shipping them to major computer

chipmakers.

ASML dominates the market for lithography systems, used to

help create the circuitry of chips. It is currently conducting

one round of expansion and expects to need more in the coming

years as the global demand for chips increases.

Multinationals Shell and Unilever departed the Netherlands

in recent years following an unfavourable change in Dutch tax

law.

Another policy under consideration by parties attempting to

form a right wing government following the election is to limit

the number of foreign students that can attend Dutch

universities - a key source of labour for the country's tech

firms.

"The consequences of limiting labour migration are large, we

need those people to innovate," Wennink said in January. "If we

can't get those people here, we will go somewhere where we can

grow."

Though it would be difficult for the company to move its

headquarters, De Telegraaf mentioned France as a possible

destination for a company expansion, citing a single source.

Chipmakers across the globe are pouring billions of dollars

in investment to set up new plants, encouraged by the rising use

of semiconductors in everyday devices and generous subsidies

from the United States and the EU aimed at keeping the West

ahead of China in the race for cutting-edge technology.