The LEGO Group today began construction on a new $1 billion factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam

This morning, November 3, in Binh Duong, Vietnam, the LEGO Group (Denmark) started constructing a new factory worth $1 billion. This is LEGO’s sixth factory and its first carbon-neutral factory. Along with the leaders of the LEGO Group, Mr. Pham Binh Minh, the permanent deputy prime minister of Vietnam, and Frederik André Henrik Christian, the crown prince of Denmark, also attended today’s groundbreaking ceremony. The LEGO Group’s new factory is built on a 44-hectare site. This is where LEGO will produce and package its products using the most cutting-edge technology. This factory differs from others since it uses solar energy for production, saves energy and minimizes negative impacts on the environment. In order to meet its energy demands for production, the LEGO group will install solar panels on the factory’s roof and have a nearby solar power project built by VSIP. The production equipment is also energy-efficient and completely complies with the LEED Gold standard, which is the third of four LEED certification levels for green buildings (just below LEED Platinum). Vietnam’s young, robust, and relatively inexpensive labor pool is one factor that cannot be ignored in the decision to establish the first LEGO manufacturing site in Southeast Asia. However, Mr. Preben Elnef, vice president and general director of the LEGO Group in Vietnam, asserted in a speech in September that the key factors in the company’s decision to choose Vietnam were the market’s potential for future growth and the opportunity to expand LEGO’s supply chain network. Binh Duong province also demonstrates its potential through its rapid economic development and has an infrastructure, which is suitable for LEGO’s vision and development priorities for the next 20 years. The new LEGO factory is expected to begin operations in 2024 and aims to produce the first products by July 2024. Over 4000 local workers are estimated to benefit from this factory’s employment opportunities over the course of 15 years. This is also considered the most sustainable LEGO manufacturing site in the world to date.