Sweden’s Northvolt is scaling back plans after years of rapid expansion and will enact major job cuts. Here’s what’s going on.

Europe’s attempt at building a battery manufacturing powerhouse announced that it had halted work on a factory expansion and laid off about 20% of its employees.

Northvolt plans to cut 1,600 jobs at its base in Sweden, or about a fifth of its global workforce, as Europe's biggest hope in the electric vehicle battery market struggles with production problems, sluggish demand and competition from China.