Umicore pauses construction of battery materials plant in Canada
The company also said that the cost-cutting measures it had announced in July would contribute USD 43 million in savings in 2025 and impact 100 positions in Belgium.
Umicore will pause construction of a battery materials plant in Canada, the Belgian-based group has announced.
The metals recycler and battery materials producer launched a review of its business in July, and said it had postponed large-scale investments in a battery recycling plant in Loyalist, Canada, and another one in Europe.
The company also said that the measures it had announced in July will impact 100 positions in Belgium.
“Umicore is navigating a challenging environment where we feel the impact of the complex transitioning of the automotive industry towards electric mobility,” said Bart Sap, CEO of Umicore. “Serving our North American customers out of Korea is now clearly the most effective use of our assets. To ensure our company’s long-term competitiveness, we need to make difficult decisions. We commit to support our teams throughout these changes.”
Umicore said it had not drawn on incentives provided by the Canadian government. Should construction restart, it would access these incentives under the same conditions, which include employment commitments.
Umicore, which makes catalytic converters and provides battery materials for carmakers, said that the cost-cutting measures it had announced in July would contribute 40 million euros (USD 43 million) in savings in 2025.
The measures would also impact around 260 positions, of which 100 are in Belgium, the company said. Umicore’s total employee count is 12,000.
The company has started consultations with trade unions and intends to resize the workforce of its battery materials division, mainly in its Jiangmen, China production plant, besides discontinuing R&D activities in Hørsholm (Denmark).
“While these decisions were not made lightly, they set us on the right path for us to be better positioned to seize future opportunities,” CEO Bart Sap said. “In these transformative times, I want to especially thank our teams for their support and commitment to our Group.”
