Economics
The US Industrial Complex Is Starting to Buckle From High Power Costs
Surging bills are forcing companies to scale back industrial operations, threatening a greater drag on the economy.
A worker clears slag off the top of molten aluminum at a Century Aluminum Co. facility in Hawesville, Ky.
Photographer: Bryan Woolston/ReutersThis article is for subscribers only.
It was only a matter of time, really.
Europe’s fertilizer plants, steel mills, and chemical manufacturers were the first to succumb. Massive paper mills, soybean processors, and electronics factories in Asia went dark.