Battery manufacturer LG Energy Solution will lay off 170 workers from its Holland, Michigan, site, the company confirmed to Manufacturing Dive on Thursday.
The layoffs come as the company expands and transitions some production lines from their current production facility in Holland to a second factory within the site, where fewer staff are needed, according to an emailed company statement.
"Due to this production gap and automakers realigning the speed of the EV transition, it is with deep regret that we must unfortunately announce layoffs in Holland," the company said.
The phased layoff will occur between next month and January 2024.
South Korea-based LG Energy Solution is rapidly expanding its production capacity in the U.S., including in Holland. The company announced plans last month to invest $3 billion in its Holland campus as part of a new lithium battery supply deal with Toyota.
The battery maker has been aggressively building its U.S. manufacturing network through a combination of owned operations and joint ventures.
The company is building joint venture battery factories with Hyundai, Honda and GM, and is also establishing its own factories in Holland and Arizona.
Like others in the EV space, LG Energy Solution has been adjusting operations to mitigate slower-than-expected demand.
The company's revenue fell 6% in Q3 compared to the previous quarter, which it blamed on slowing sales in Europe despite what it called a robust market in North America. Executives also forecasted a slow final quarter this year during a recent earnings call.
Other battery makers are also making labor cuts in a slow market. SK Battery will furlough an unspecified number of workers from its Jackson County, Georgia, site due to a drop in demand, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution first reported on Sunday. Production at the site will not stop as a result, however.
