Moses Lake facility among those affected by Group14 layoffs
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year AGO
An undisclosed number of workers were laid off from Group14 at the beginning of July. The plant is still expected to begin production in early 2026, according to Group 14 representatives, and laid off staff are eligible for rehire.
FILE PHOTO
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | July 5, 2025 1:28 PM
MOSES LAKE — An undisclosed number of employees received layoff notices from the Group14 facility in Moses Lake on July 1. Moses Lake facility manager Don Kersey said construction on the facility is continuing.
“We did have a layoff (July 1),” Kersey said. “We can’t get into numbers, but we did rebalance our workforce to ensure the long-term resilience (and) competitiveness of our business. (The layoffs were) not just here in Moses Lake, but Group14 here in Washington state. It’s very unfortunate.”
He said the company didn’t anticipate any additional layoffs right now.
“Not at this time,” he said.
Marisa Cairns, career and training specialist for SkillSource, said the agency has been working with Group14, but those arrangements are confidential.
The company announced in April that the pace of construction for its Moses Lake facility would be slowed down. However, Kersey said Group14 is not considering abandoning the project.
“Absolutely not. In fact, we’re still expecting production in the first quarter of 2026,” Kersey said.
The target date to start production of silicon battery materials in Moses Lake has been pushed back multiple times. In an April interview, Rick Lubbe, Group14 chief executive officer, said market conditions have changed and some of the anticipated demand from China hasn’t materialized.
Group14 is continuing to work on a joint venture in South Korea.
“Within the month of July, we’re hoping to have (the South Korea) plant in production. That’s where our focus is right now,” Kersey said.
Luebbe said in April that slowing down the pace of construction would allow for cost reductions.
“We’ve slowed that construction down to a more methodical approach, more of a sequence approach. Rather than have a lot of the (construction) trades stacked all working together, we’re having one trade at a time,” Kersey said. “The approach we have now is more deliberate. We can see the end now.”
Once production does start, Kersey said Group14 officials will reevaluate their workforce needs.
“We will start slow, of course. But then when we start ramping up, yes, we will need to rehire. All of the employees who were let go are eligible for rehire,” he said. “We hope to start production in the first quarter of 2026, and right around then, first quarter (or) second quarter, rehire.”
Production levels are still to be determined, Kersey said.
“These things aren’t easy (and) aren’t taken lightly. The future is still there, and the future looks very bright. We just have to grind through this,” Kersey said.
The layoffs come with multiple hits to the Moses Lake area economy occurring in recent months. According to the Washington Employment Security Department, REC Silicon laid off 224 staff on January 16 when that company’s plant closed. An exact number of staff laid off at Group 14 has not yet been posted to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification database as of Friday. View the database here: https://bit.ly/ESDWARN
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