Silicon battery developer Enovix this week laid off 185 engineers and different workers at its Fremont, Calif., manufacturing unit because it shifted the majority of its operations to Asia, near the smartphone producers that it hopes will purchase its cells.
The strikes, introduced Tuesday, mirror a actuality within the quickly rising lithium-ion battery trade, which is that—given the burden and bulk of battery cells—battery and battery part producers are more likely to migrate as shut as they will to uncooked supplies, labor and prospects. In follow, this possible signifies that the nascent U.S. battery provide chain will primarily serve North America, and China, the world’s largest marketplace for electronics and electrical automobiles, will proceed to be the most important battery producer.
