Summary
- Lukashenka said Russia has a need for 7 nanometer microchips and Belarus knows how to produce them.
- Only a few companies in the world from Taiwan, Korea and China produce chips using the 7 nm process;
- Belarusian Integral is the only enterprise in Belarus specializing in microchip production. Their current level is the microchips of the late 90s, and the technological gap from the advanced 7 nm technologies is more than 15 times;
- The main focus of Integral’s work is the Russian military-industrial complex. Belarusian microchips are used in Russian weapons and missiles. The company’s profit increased 40 times after 2022 due to supplies to Russia;
- Belarus does not have the technology and equipment to create the production of microchips at the 7 nm level, the supply of these technologies is prohibited by sanctions;
- Integral is capable of producing microcircuits of at least 180 nanometers level, the real plan for the next 5-10 years is 90 nm level and focus on the military industry of Russia as the only real direction for development and profit;
- Belarusian specialists recognize that attempts to create a 7 nm plant in Belarus are not economically expedient;
- Russia also does not have 7 nm technology, and companies from the PRC are unlikely to provide support due to the risk of secondary sanctions and the importance of the field to China itself.
Context
Lukashenka spoke at the Federation Council. Photo: Lukashenka’s press service.
On March 14, Aliaksandr Lukashenka addressed the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, where in his speech he several times raised the topic of microelectronics production for Russian weapons used in the war against Ukraine. In this context, Lukashenka mentioned cooperation with Russian companies Roscosmos, Rosatom, Rostec, Almaz-Antey and several times spoke about Russia’s need for microchips using the 7-nanometer (7 nm) process.
According to him, if necessary, Belarus will set up production of 7 nm chips. Lukashenka also spoke about them in the context of the possible return of Western companies: “If you really need 7 nanometers, well, build a plant, we will provide benefits.”
The only microelectronics manufacturer in Belarus is the Integral enterprise, which is currently capable of producing microchips using a process up to 180 nm (the level of the 1990s-2000s) and actively supplies them to the Russian Armed Forces. Microchips of Belarusian production lag behind their modern analogues at least 15-20 times, but they are massively used in the products of the Russian military industry: missile equipment, aviation, weapon control and communication systems. Since, despite their outdated technologies, they are suitable for the armament of Russia and the USSR.
The current technological gap from Western microelectronics cannot be bridged in the coming years, just as it is impossible to create the production of modern 7 nm chips in Belarus — their production requires modern EUV lithographers produced by the Dutch ASML company (worth $180 million) and other special equipment, the supply of which is prohibited by the sanctions against Belarus and Russia. The mentioned company not only does not supply equipment to Belarus, but also does not employ citizens of Russia (and possibly Belarus). In addition, the possibility of covert delivery of these products to Belarus to circumvent sanctions is also questionable, as such a delivery would not go unnoticed due to the large size of the cargo.
Chinese companies, which have already mastered the production of 7 nm microchips, are unlikely to support Lukashenka because of the risk of falling under secondary sanctions and the fact that this area of microelectronics is a priority for China itself.
It is most likely that in the next 5-10 years Belarusian microelectronics will continue to specialize in outdated microcircuits of the 90s and will focus on the production and supply of chips for the Russian military industry, since the military direction is actually the only one where Belarus’ Integral has the potential for development and profit. At the same time, a gradual modernization of production is also probable, without attempts to jump to the 7 nm level at once, Integral may well master the production of microchips with the technological processes up to 90 nm already in the coming years.
For reference: 7 nm is the marketing name of the technology for the production of chips using the 7-nanometer process. The main manufacturers of 7 nm at the moment are Korean Samsung, Taiwanese TSMC, as well as Chinese companies SMIC and Loongson, working on the equipment of the Dutch ASML company. The leader in production is Taiwanese TSMC, which supplies them to other companies, including AMD and Apple.
Currently 7 nm is no longer the latest technology, as TSMC announced back in 2022 that it would start production using the next generation of 3 nm technology. This is the technology that Apple’s cutting-edge processors A18 and A18 Pro (3nm FinFET (TSMC N3E) are built on.
What microcircuits are produced in Belarus now and by whom?
The building of the Integral. Photo: onliner.by
The main producer of microelectronics in Belarus is Integral, which cooperates with the Russian military-industrial complex. We have received information that the company is engaged in supplying the Russian Armed Forces with chips and boards for missiles, as well as other microelectronics.
Currently, the microchips produced at Integral are far from the 7 nm technological process, the serial production of microchips at the enterprise is carried out according to the technological norms – about 350 nm and higher. For example, in January 2024, it was reported that Belarus had learned to make chips only from 180 to 350 nanometers. Later, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of Russia Viktor Yevtukhov announced that Integral, together with Russian enterprises, would create four new technological processes for the production of products within the electronic component base. According to him, it was no longer about 90-40 nm, but about approaching the production of microchips of 28-30 nanometer topology.
However, on February 14, 2025, during Lukashenka’s visit to the Integral plant, there was no talk of 30 nm, but it was said that the company sought to produce the first device with topological standards of 90 nanometers. Even later, on March 6, 2025, Aleksandr Gaponov, deputy director of the Department of Radio Electronic Industry of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia, said that at the moment the company is creating capacities for the production of plates from 600 to 250-240 nanometers. Based on the statements, it appears that Integral can currently produce chips with a topology of only 0.18-0.25 micrometers, which corresponds to the technologies of the late 1990s.
In addition, in an interview in 2018, Vitali Saladukha, former CEO of Integral, stated that only a few companies in the world, which invest billions of dollars in technology, can work on 10 — 7 nm standards, while most of the world’s microcircuits are produced using much simpler technologies (≈350 nm and above). Belarusian specialists themselves admit that for such a small country, it is economically inexpedient to try to create a 7 nm plant, as it will be almost unrealistic to recoup such investments.
In addition, there are a number of other enterprises in Belarus, including Planar (and associated Design Bureau KBTEM-OMO), JSC Peleng and Design Bureau Radar, which use microelectronics and chips in their products, but according to open data, do not produce microcircuits of the appropriate level themselves.
The aforementioned Planar plant specializes in the development and production of equipment for semiconductor production, manufactures photolithography units and, according to Lukashenka, creates machines and equipment for chip production. The company is also involved in joint projects with Russian organizations to create lithographers. It is known that the first Russian 350 nm lithographer produced by the Zelenograd Nanotechnology Center is a product of deep processing of the Belarusian EM-5784 alignment and exposure unit produced by Planar.
Nevertheless, neither Planar nor other associated enterprises are directly involved in the production and manufacture of microchips. Thus, at the moment, Integral remains the only serial chip manufacturer in the country, and its technical level today is hundreds of nanometers, not units of nanometers.
Integral’s chips in Russian missiles: Russian military-industrial complex is the main direction of the Belarusian enterprise’s work
Kh-101. Photo: pravda.com.ua
Even before the current stage of the war, most of the Belarusian Integra’’s exports were steadily going to Russia. For example, already in the early 2010s, up to 80% of the microcircuits exported by Integral were purchased by Russian enterprises, primarily defense companies. With the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the demand for Belarusian microchips from the Russian military-industrial complex increased even more. According to Lukashenka, in October 2022, Vladimir Putin explicitly stated his readiness to pay any money for microelectronics products.
As a result, according to available data, from March 2022 to June 2024, Integral exported more than 6 million microcircuits to Russia worth more than $130 million (about 80% of all Belarusian shipments of microcircuits to Russia during this period), which emphasizes Integral’s dominance in exports of military electronics.
Microcircuits from Belarusian Integral are used in various military products — from onboard electronics of missiles to communication and control systems, while Belarusian chips are in demand in Russian missile equipment, aviation, weapon control and communication systems. For example, there is evidence that Belarusian-made microcircuits are used in Russian missile weapons that Russia is launching against Ukraine. In particular, microchips produced at Integral in 2023 were found in the wreckage of Russian Iskander, Kalibr, Kh-101 and other missiles. The use of microchips produced at Integral in Russian missile systems is also confirmed by the Security Service of Ukraine.
Moreover, it is estimated that about half of all microcircuits in Russian Kh-101 and Iskander guided missiles are produced by Integral. Belarusian microcircuits are also used in critical guidance nodes and board computers of these missiles. For example, microcircuits labeled “Integral” were also found in the module of the Zarya-61M board computer, which directly links the company’s products with Russian missile systems.
It should also be noted that the discovery of Integral chips of 2023 year of manufacture in the wreckage of Russian missiles can also indicate the expansion and acceleration of production by the Belarusian enterprise precisely to fulfill military orders. At the same time, the production technology of Integral microprocessors remains at the same level (technological processes of about 250-180 nm and higher), i.e. we are talking not about the newest chips, but about mass-produced reliable components suitable for use in Soviet- and Russian-designed weapons.
Additional confirmation of Integral’s work on military orders for the needs of Russia is provided by the data of financial statements, according to which Integral’s profits soared after 2022. For example, according to the results of 2023, the net profit of the company reached about $50 million, which is 40 times more than in 2021. This growth was a direct consequence of increased supplies to the Russian military-industrial complex.
There is no technology for 7 nm production in Belarus, supplies are under sanctions
Despite the fact that Belarus’ Integral continues to produce and successfully sell products based on outdated technological processes in Russia, Lukashenka regularly mentions modern 7 nm technologies in his speeches. He has mentioned and demanded the production of such microcircuits in Belarus several times over the past few years, for example, in 2023 and 2024. However, there are currently only a few companies in the world (Samsung, TSMC, SMIC and Loongson) capable of producing chips using the 7 nm process, which remains advanced and unavailable to most countries, including Russia. Like Belarus, Russia also uses an outdated process – they can produce chips using processes up to 90 nm, and at the experimental level, which is conducted at Mikron PJSC and Crocus Nanoelectronics, up to 65- 55 nm.
Supplies of 7 nm chips themselves to Belarus are prohibited by sanctions and bans of manufacturing companies. As an example, back in February 2022, right after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Taiwan (where TSMC and other contract plants are located) banned the supply of any defense products, including product lines for microcircuits and equipment for semiconductor production, to Belarus and Russia. Later, the U.S. extended restrictions on the supply of microchips to Russia and Belarus. Thus, the purchase of modern 7 nm chips is now impossible for Minsk in the legal matter.
It is also impossible to legally deliver equipment for the production of 7 nm chips to Belarus and Russia. Since the production of any microchips using the 45 nm process and below requires ArF immersion lithography units, and for processes below 7 nm EUV lithographs are required, which are produced by ASML, Nikon and Canon – the supply of such equipment to Belarus and Russia is also prohibited by sanctions.
The main manufacturer of EUV lithographers in the world is the Dutch ASML, which not only does not supply its equipment to Belarus and Russia, but does not even employ citizens of Russia and probably Belarus. The company stopped supplying its products to China in 2024 and stopped servicing chip-making machines in China. With the ban on supplies of Dutch EUV lithographers not only to Belarus, but also to the key partners of the Lukashenka regime, the launch of production using the 7 nanometer process in Belarus becomes practically impossible.
In addition, grey imports and attempts to circumvent sanctions through intermediaries, which have been previously recorded at Integral, in the case of an attempt to smuggle equipment for the production of 7 nm chips, will not go unnoticed – the equipment for their production, for example, EUV lithographers, are too large.
In addition to sanctions, the creation of such a production requires impressive financial investments – the cost of only one ASML unit exceeds $180 million, and in addition to lithographic scanners, 7 nm production also requires ultrapure 300-mm silicon plates, advanced thin film deposition systems, etching, 7 nm class photomasks, and other equipment. Belarus does not have any of these elements at the moment, and Belarusian enterprises have no experience in creating 7 nm devices.
Gap between ambition and opportunity
The building of the Integral. Photo: integral.by
It should also be noted that Lukashenka’s statements about the possibility of producing modern microcircuits face a number of obvious inconsistencies with the facts. Modern 7 nm chips contain billions of transistors on a single die and require extremely precise equipment. While the chips produced in Belarus have topologies tens of thousands of times larger. And even Lukashenka himself actually recognized this gap.
In April 2023, at the meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State, he said that Western manufacturers have technological standards of “0.7 nanometers” (meaning 7 nm processes), while Belarus has technologies of “near 100 nanometers.” Thus, his words suggest that the technological gap between Belarusian Integral and Western chip manufacturers is 15 times, which is close to the truth. This gap concerns not only the size of transistors, but also the whole infrastructure: personnel, experience, available investments. As long as it is not overcome, no declarations will make Belarus a competitor to TSMC or Samsung.
Besides, it is important to emphasize that Belarus’ Integral specializes only in a limited segment of microelectronics production — analogue-digital and special microcircuits of old generations. And it is not competitive in the field of high-performance processors, storage, compact and economical chips for communication, etc.
Possible ways of microelectronics development in Belarus
Based on the analyzed information, we can conclude that in the next 5-10 years, the priority task for Integral may become the mastering of medium, rather than micro level processes. The realistic next level for the Belarusian enterprise may be microchips using the process from 180 nm to 90 nm. This is supported by the fact that by 2026, Russia plans to create a 130 nm lithography unit, which will make it possible to establish production of chips at the level of the initial Pentium generations of the late 1990s — early 2000s in the future.
For Belarus, the full implementation of the 180 nm and then 90 nm process would be a significant progress, expanding the nomenclature of manufactured products. This would open up the possibility to produce more complex microcontrollers, signal processors, ASIC for special communications, which now have to be purchased.
It is also known that Integral has set up a laboratory of new technologies, which is already conducting research on power devices based on gallium nitride, MEMS sensors, etc. Further development of these areas can, for example, help to establish supplies of sensors and radiation-resistant microchips for export to Russia, but these products will not compete with major microelectronics manufacturers.
Most likely, Integral will continue to develop the direction of microelectronics production for defense and space, since such precise microprocessors are not required there, and microchips of outdated topology are suitable. The company may continue to focus on special “thick” microcircuits for Russian missile equipment, EW systems, satellites, etc. These products do not require 7 nm standards, and the emphasis is on reliability and durability. Besides, a significant part of Russia’s military and space requirements are quite satisfied with the technologies of 130 nm and above. Belarus can strengthen its positions in this very segment, thus generating revenues and investing them in gradual modernization of equipment.
We should also mention another way of development – the fabless model, which is practiced by many countries, including companies from Israel or Europe. It means that companies develop microcircuits, but manufacture them at contract plants in Asia. Theoretically, this model would be suitable for Belarusian manufacturers, as there is nowhere to produce 7 nm chips in Belarus, but Belarusian engineers could participate in the development of circuits for larger technological processes, while the production could be located abroad. Under conditions of sanctions, Belarus will not be able to cooperate with major microchip manufacturing companies, such as TSMC or Samsung, but it can start looking for partners for production in China.
Major Chinese companies SMIC and Loongson, which already produce chips using the 7 nanometer process, could theoretically support Belarus in this matter. However, any supply of these chips to Belarus or Russia carries a high risk for Chinese companies to fall under secondary sanctions of the U.S. or the EU. Given that the production of microchips of this level is one of China’s strategic objectives, the likelihood that they will cooperate with Russia or Belarus in this area is extremely low.
Thus, the most probable way of further development of Belarusian microelectronics is niche specialization in outdated microchips for the military industry and gradual modernization, without attempts to jump straight to the 7 nm level.
Conclusion. The statement about the production of 7 nanometer microchips in Belarus is not confirmed by facts, Integral will continue to focus on the Russian military-industrial complex
The building of the Integral. Photo: onliner.by
Based on the analysis, it can be seen that the Belarusian microelectronics industry is actually represented by only one key enterprise, which has been showing a multiple growth of income in recent years due to an increase in the supply of microchips for the armaments of the Russian military-industrial complex. Despite the fact that Belarus’ Integral is capable of producing microcircuits of at least 180 nanometers, which corresponds to the technologies of the late 1990s, their products are in demand in the Russian market, as they fit both Soviet and Russian military equipment (which is made according to the Soviet model).
The 7 nm process is currently unattainable for Belarusian and Russian enterprises. Belarusian enterprises have no experience in creating 7 nm devices, and, accordingly, there is no technological reserve in the country for jumping to 7 nm. In addition, access to advanced solutions is also blocked by international sanctions, and Chinese companies are unlikely to support Lukashenka because of the risk of falling under secondary sanctions.
The main conclusion is that Lukashenka’s statement about the possibility of 7 nm production in Belarus is political rhetoric not supported by a real industrial base. Belarusian microelectronics will continue to develop in the direction of producing “thick” chips for Russia’s military needs, as the military direction is actually the only logical continuation of the activities of the Belarusian Integral plant and Belarusian microelectronics in general, where they have the potential for further development and profit.
Материал доступен на русском языке: Военная промышленность — оптимальный путь для беларусской микроэлектроники в условиях изоляции
