Lego Group said Thursday production at its forthcoming $1 billion Richmond-area manufacturing facility would begin in 2027, about a year later than initially planned.
The delay was caused in part by the time it took to finalize a deal with a general contractor and getting ramp-up and design plans squared away.
The Danish company behind those beloved toy bricks said it selected a joint venture between Lexington, Kentucky’s Gray and Richmond’s Hourigan to be the general contractor for the Chesterfield County facility, which will span 1.7 million square feet in Chesterfield County’s Meadowville Technology Park. Gray|Hourigan, as the joint venture is called, will manage deep foundation and site preparation work this year. The construction of 13 factory buildings is expected to start later this year. A groundbreaking ceremony was held at the site in April without a contractor selected.
Lego also said it named 10-year Lego veteran Preben Elnef as the permanent program lead on the new factory. Elnef recently spent three years with Lego’s Vietnam business, where he established an operating unit and oversaw construction of a new factory. That facility is to begin production next year.
“This is an important program in support of our mission to inspire and develop kids across the Americas region for generations to come,” Elnef said of Lego’s Virginia facility. “It is also a step towards operating more sustainably, as we’re building a site designed to minimize energy use. I look forward to continuing our important partnerships in the local community to bring play to more children in Virginia.”
The new facility is to be carbon-neutral, with an on-site solar plant with as many as 53,000 panels to match the total annual energy requirement.
Lego opened a temporary packing facility in Chesterfield in October. That facility opened ahead of schedule, and the company said that outpost and its more than 200 employees play “an important role in meeting consumer demand in the United States.”
Lego said it remains committed to creating more than 1,760 jobs over the next 10 years in Central Virginia, including highly skilled roles for the molding of Lego bricks.
Currently, Legos marketed in the U.S. are primarily made at a company factory in Monterrey, Mexico. The Chesterfield facility will be Lego’s first manufacturing facility in the U.S., where its bricks have been sold since the 1960s. An American subsidiary was established in the mid-1970s.
Late last year, Lego said it was dispersing $1 million in grant funding to six Richmond-area nonprofits focused on helping children and families.
