Bad news for the EV market.
Swedish battery maker Northvolt plans to cut 1,600 jobs in Sweden, or about a fifth of its workforce, as slower-than-expected demand for electric vehicles puts pressure on the auto sector, Reuters reported.
Touted as one of the pioneers in Europe’s efforts to build its own electric vehicle battery sector, the company has scaled back several of its initiatives in recent months after a series of commercial and operational setbacks.
Nortvolt is also abandoning plans for a major expansion of its plant in northern Sweden, saying it will focus its resources on accelerating production of battery cells at the plant and prioritize commitments to existing automotive customers.
The company, whose owners include Germany’s Volkswagen, has led a wave of European startups that have invested tens of billions of dollars in battery production for the region’s automakers as they transition from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles.
However, demand for electric vehicles is growing more slowly than expected and competition remains strong from China, which controls 85 percent of global battery cell production, according to International Energy Agency (IEA) data.
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