Danish toy manufacturer LEGO Group kicked off the construction of a new factory worth US$1 billion in Vietnam’s southern Binh Duong Province at a ground-breaking ceremony held on Thursday morning.

The event was attended by Vietnam’s Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh and Danish Crown Prince Frederik, who started his four-day official visit to Vietnam on Monday, among other participants. 

The new plant is the largest ever investment by the Danish group in Vietnam, and is part of its strategy to expand its supply chain network.

The project marked an important milestone for LEGO as it celebrated the ground-breaking ceremony of its sixth factory worldwide that is also its first carbon-neutral factory, said LEGO CEO Niels B. Christiansen. 

This not only allows us to bring learning-through-play methods to more children and create lasting growth in the Asia Pacific region, but it also enables LEGO to quickly adapt and respond to changes in consumer demand, he commented.

The CEO extended his thanks for all the support LEGO has been receiving in realizing the group’s production plans in Vietnam.

He also said he is looking forward to coordinating with authorities and partners in building the new plant that is expected to have positive impacts on the local economy and communities.

Located on a 44-hectare site, the size of 62 football fields, the new facility is expected to be put into operation in 2024 and generate around 4,000 jobs in the next 15 years.

It will become a place where the most advanced technologies will be applied to make molds, and process and package LEGO products.

This is the first LEGO factory to be designed as a carbon-neutral facility.

In addition to the solar panels on its roof, the factory will also have a solar power farm built on a neighboring land lot, meeting its total annual energy demand.

The factory will also use state-of-the-art energy-efficient production equipment and meet the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold requirements.

The group will train high-skilled local workers to operate such equipment that ensure every LEGO piece has an accuracy rate of one-tenth of the thickness of a human hair, according to the group.

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