Lego opens a toy factory in Vietnam it plans to run entirely on clean energy

BINH DUONG, Vietnam (AP) — Lego opened a $1 billion factory in Vietnam on Wednesday that it says will make toys without adding planet-warming gas to the atmosphere by relying entirely on clean energy.

The factory in the industrial area of Binh Duong, close to Ho Chi Minh City, is the first in Vietnam that aims to run entirely on clean energy. Lego says it will do that by early 2026.

It's the Danish company's sixth worldwide and its second in Asia. It will use high-tech equipment to produce colorful Lego bricks for Southeast Asia’s growing markets.

“We just want to make sure that the planet that the children inherit when they grow up needs to be a planet that is still there. That is functional,” Lego CEO Niels Christiansen told The Associated Press.

The factory is an important factor in Lego's quest to stop adding greenhouse gases by 2050. It has a shorter-term target of reducing emissions by 37% by 2032. The privately held group makes its bricks out of oil-based plastic and says it has invested more than $1.2 billion in a search for more sustainable alternatives. But those efforts have not always been successful.

Fast-industrializing Vietnam also aims to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, so it needs more of its factories to use clean energy. The country hopes the plant’s 12,400 solar panels and energy storage system will help set a precedent for more sustainable manufacturing.

Locating the Lego factories in regions they supply has also helped insulate them from the tariffs ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump, Christiansen said. “Right now, I am probably more observant of what does this mean to growth in the world? Do we see consumer sentiment changing in parts of the world or not, and what would that potentially mean?” he said.

The blocks are made from differently colored plastic grains that are melted at high temperatures and then fed into metal molds. The highly automated factory uses robots for making the bricks to a tenth of a hair's width precision and then packaging them. It eventually will employ thousands of mostly skilled workers to operate these machines. Some of them have already begun work after being trained in in Lego's factory in eastern China.

Manufacturing makes up a fifth of Vietnam's GDP and consumes half the energy it uses. There are plans to phase out its coal power plants by 2040.

The Lego factory, which spans 62 soccer fields, sets the “blueprint” for making large, power-guzzling factories sustainable while remaining profitable, said Mimi Vu, a founder of the consultancy Raise Partners in Ho Chi Minh City. “Sometimes it takes a big company, like Lego, to take those risks. To show that we can do it … And we can be profitable,” she said.

The factory will benefit from a new 2024 rule known as a direct power purchase agreement or DPPA, which allows big foreign companies to buy clean energy directly from solar and wind power producers and to meet their clean energy requirements.

The factory will be linked to an adjacent energy center where electricity can be stored in large batteries.

“So even if the sun is only shining during the day, we store the energy and can use it all over. That will cover by far the majority of the consumption of the factory,” added Christiansen,

The remaining 10%-20% of the factory's energy needs will be met through agreements with other clean energy producers.

“Lego and Vietnam, we are having the same aspirations. We both want to be green, to play our part in the climate. And I think this with the solar and battery and DPPA, it is showcasing that it can be done,” Jesper Hassellund Mikkelsen, Senior Vice President Asia Operations at the LEGO Group told The AP.

The company will also open a distribution center in Vietnam's southern Dong Nai province to help serve markets in Australia and other Asian countries where it sees an opportunity for growth.

The five buildings in the factory meet high energy efficiency standards. Lego also has planted 50,000 trees – twice the number of the trees it cut to clear land for the factory. It's the first Lego factory to replace single-use plastic bags with paper bags for packaging.

Lego's founder, Ole Kirk Kristiansen, started the company as a wooden toy maker before patenting the iconic plastic bricks in 1958. It is still is seeking a way to make its plastic bricks more environmentally friendly.

Christiansen said Lego bricks last decades and could be reused, though the ultimately ambition is to make them out of more renewable materials. He said that a third of the materials used in Lego bricks made last year were from renewable and recycled sources. But that's more expensive than plastic made out of fossil fuels.

“It’s not inexpensive at this point in time, but we believe if we ... lean into that, we help create a supply chain for the type of plastic materials that are not based on fossil fuel,” he said.

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Workers scrub the floor at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

A worker operates packing machines at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

Lego CEO Niels Christiansen speaks during an interview at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

Workers scrub the floor at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

A worker walks past Lego characters in Vietnamese traditional lion dance costumes displayed at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

A worker operates a moulding machine at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

Workers leave work at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

Lego bricks are moved on conveyor belt at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

Lego pieces are moved in packing machine at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

This image released by The LEGO Group, shows a Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam. (The LEGO Group via AP)

Lego bricks are held in a worker's hands for checking at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

A worker operates packing machines at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

Workers sort out Lego bricks at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

A worker operates packing machines at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

Lego CEO Niels Christiansen poses for a photo at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

Lego characters in Vietnamese traditional costumes are displayed at Lego factory in Binh Duong, Vietnam Wednesday, April, 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh)

MIAMI (AP) — Here's a guide what you need to know about Sunday's Miami F1 Grand Prix. It's the sixth round of the 2025 Formula 1 season.

— In the U.S., on ABC.

— Other countries are listed here.

— Friday: First practice and qualifying for the sprint race.

— Saturday: Sprint race and qualifying for the Grand Prix.

— Sunday: Miami Grand Prix, 57 laps of the 5.4-kilometer (3.4-mile) Miami International Autodrome. Starts at 4 p.m. ET (2000 GMT).

The Miami International Autodrome brings a Florida party vibe to F1 with yachts set up on a mock harbor trackside as VIP viewing platforms. It's the fourth time F1 has visited the temporary track, which loops around Hard Rock Stadium. Overtaking can be difficult and barriers close to the track punish mistakes. Max Verstappen won the first two races in Miami but last year there was a statement win for Lando Norris and McLaren. Heat and tire wear could favor McLaren again this year.

Oscar Piastri won the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix to become the first Australian to lead the F1 standings since 2010. The key moment was at the first corner when Piastri challenged Verstappen for the lead and the Dutch driver went off track and rejoined in front. Verstappen was given a penalty and lost the lead at his pit stop. McLaren remains the top team on all-round pace. Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren have all challenged for wins on different tracks but haven't adapted well when conditions don't suit their cars.

Get caught up:

— Max Verstappen delighted at birth of his first child with partner Kelly Piquet

— No team orders: McLaren plans to ‘let ‘em race’ as Piastri and Norris battle for F1 championship

— Russell not impressed by FIA hinting at relaxing rules against cursing and code of driver conduct

— McLaren driver Oscar Piastri wins F1’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix to take overall lead

— ‘I cannot share my opinion’: Max Verstappen stays tight-lipped on race-deciding penalty

— Is the punishment for cursing in F1 too harsh? Racing boss hints at changes after driver backlash

— General Motors’ plans to supply Formula 1 engines from 2029 are approved by the FIA

— FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem picks a longtime Ford partner for top sports role

3 — Oscar Piastri is aiming for his third win in a row. The last Australian driver to achieve that feat in F1 was Alan Jones in 1981.

0/3 — None of Miami's three Grand Prix races so far have been won by the driver who started on the pole. Norris won last year from fifth on the grid.

77 — McLaren's lead in the constructors' championship over Mercedes, the only other team with even half of McLaren's 188-point haul.

“Let ’em race.” — McLaren boss Zak Brown on the championship battle between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.

“We (drivers) are clear we want changes. And once they are implemented, then we’ll comment.” — George Russell on relaxing rules against cursing and code of driver conduct.

“I want to be leading (the championship) after round 24, not round five.” — Oscar Piastri.

“You can’t share your opinion because it’s not appreciated, apparently, or people can’t handle the full truth.” — Max Verstappen refuses to discuss his crucial penalty at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

“We just need a better car.” — Ferrari's Charles Leclerc after finishing third in Saudi Arabia.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Race winner McLaren driver Oscar Piastri of Australia, second right, poses with second placed Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands, left, and third placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco, right, after the Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Sunday, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

McLaren driver Oscar Piastri of Australia celebrates after winning the Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Sunday, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

McLaren driver Oscar Piastri of Australia celebrates after winning the Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Sunday, April 20, 2025.(AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

McLaren driver Oscar Piastri of Australia celebrates on the podium after winning the Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Sunday, April 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)