Charlotte-based lithium producer Albemarle Corporation said Thursday that it will lay off 7% of its workforce, including 15% of its non-manufacturing employees, as a prolonged slump continues in the price of the metal used in electric vehicles and other batteries. Albemarle, which is working to reopen a long-closed lithium mine in Kings Mountain, also reported that it lost more than $1 billion in the third quarter, most of that in non-cash charges.
Lithium prices are about half of what they were averaging last year.