REC Silicon to lay off about 100 workers

MOSES LAKE — REC Silicon will be laying off nearly 40 percent of its current workforce at the Moses Lake plant, according to a press release Sunday.

The layoff will impact approximately 100 employees, the release said. The layoffs are a direct result of the ongoing trade dispute between the United States and China over solar grade polysilicon. The company plans to reduce its production in Moses Lake to approximately 25 percent of total production capacity, the release said.

“REC Silicon’s management regrets today’s lay-off of our highly-skilled colleagues,” the release said. “We have done all we can to avoid today’s action, but we have no choice while the China market remains closed. It is a tremendous injustice that the hard-working Americans, who have made REC Silicon the polysilicon industry’s technology leader and one of the most competitive producers in the world are now losing their jobs. REC Silicon can out-compete its foreign rivals, and we can do it from our manufacturing locations here in the United States. We simply need fair access to the China market.”

REC Silicon built its Moses Lake plant in 2010 with a $1.7 billion investment, according to the release.

— Staff report