HO CHI MINH CITY — Pandora has opened a $150 million manufacturing facility in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The new site marks the jewelry company's first production location outside of Thailand.

The factory is expected to increase Pandora's manufacturing capacity by approximately 50 percent. It can produce up to 60 million pieces of jewelry annually. When fully operational, the facility will employ about 7,000 people. Pandora operated its manufacturing base in Thailand for 37 years prior to expanding to Vietnam.

The new facility is powered entirely by renewable electricity from solar and wind sources. It uses 100 percent recycled gold and silver. These operational choices are expected to cut Pandora's carbon footprint by 17 percent.

In August 2024, Pandora switched to using 100 percent recycled silver and gold for new jewelry. The materials are sourced from e-waste, including medical equipment and old cutlery, processed by recyclers in Europe and Asia.

Lina Gandløse Hansen is Denmark’s ambassador to Vietnam. She emphasized that access to renewable energy infrastructure is increasingly a critical factor for Danish companies like Pandora when selecting manufacturing locations. "Access to renewable energy infrastructure to power factories is increasingly an 'important factor' for Pandora and other Danish companies," Hansen said.

Mads Twomey-Madsen is Pandora’s chief sustainability officer. Saleem H. Ali leads the program on critical minerals and inclusive energy transitions at the United Nations University. Saleem H. Ali said: "That is why it is so valuable. We still have gold from the ancient Egyptians, in pretty good shape."

Vietnam's renewable energy infrastructure was a key factor in Pandora's decision to locate its facility in Ho Chi Minh City. The country had Southeast Asia’s largest installed solar and wind capacity at the end of 2024. There are plans to phase out Vietnam's coal power plants by 2040.

Manufacturing makes up a fifth of Vietnam’s GDP and consumes half the energy it uses. Ho Chi Minh City has been a key industrial and manufacturing hub in Vietnam for over two decades. Its special economic zones attract foreign direct investment in the textile, electronics, and consumer goods sectors.

Pandora is not the first Danish company to establish a major manufacturing presence in Ho Chi Minh City. In 2018, LEGO opened a $200 million factory in the same industrial park. This signaled a growing trend of Danish firms choosing Vietnam for production.

The facility is located in the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park III. This park has been a major hub for foreign manufacturing investments since its establishment in 2009. Over 1,200 companies were operating there as of 2025.

Prior to Pandora’s investment, the park had seen a 25 percent increase in employment in the manufacturing sector between 2022 and 2024, according to reports of Statistics of Ho Chi Minh City. The park had an average annual electricity consumption of 1.2 billion kWh in 2024, with 35 percent sourced from renewable energy, according to the Vietnam Electricity Group.

In 2024, the Vietnam National University conducted a study showing that 68 percent of workers in Ho Chi Minh City’s industrial zones preferred jobs that offered environmental sustainability benefits. This aligns with Pandora’s commitment to 100 percent renewable energy use.

The LEED Gold certification for Pandora’s facility was issued by the U.S. Green Building Council, a standard that aligns with sustainability expectations in the U.S. market. As of 2025, the council has certified over 1,000 buildings in Vietnam, with 70 percent located in Ho Chi Minh City. In 2025, the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam reported that the number of certified green buildings in Ho Chi Minh City increased by 40 percent compared to 2024.

Pandora's Asia region grew by 10 percent in the second quarter. The company experienced three years of sales declines in China prior to the current period. Pandora expects to return to growth in China this year.

Pandora's Japan business doubled in size over the last three years. The business continues to grow at very high double-digit rates.

Pandora management stated that the company is clearly building the capacity today for the growth o, that for the first time it is starting to see growth coming bac, that the consumer is making the choice based on a couple of crit, and that it is leading the way and really hopes that the rest fol.

What's New

Pandora's new USD 150 million state-of-the-art crafting facility in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, will produce up to 60 million pieces of jewellery per year, increasing the company’s manufacturing capacity by 50 percent. In 2023, Ho Chi Minh City accounted for 22% of Vietnam's total FDI inflows, showing its attractiveness as a location for large-scale manufacturing projects like Pandora's new facility.

Pandora is not the first Danish company to establish a major manufacturing presence in Ho Chi Minh City; in 2018, LEGO opened a $200 million factory in the same industrial park, signaling a growing trend of Danish firms choosing Vietnam for production. The LEED Gold certification for Pandora’s facility was issued by the U.S. Green Building Council, which has certified over 1,000 buildings in Vietnam as of 2025, with 70% located in Ho Chi Minh City.

Vietnam's renewable energy infrastructure, including Southeast Asia's largest installed solar and wind capacity at the end of 2024, was a key factor in Pandora's decision to locate its facility in Ho Chi Minh City. Prior to Pandora’s investment, the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park III had seen a 25% increase in employment in the manufacturing sector between 2022 and 2024, according to reports of Statistics of Ho Chi Minh City.

The Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park III, where Pandora's facility is located, had an average annual electricity consumption of 1.2 billion kWh in 2024, with 35% sourced from renewable energy, according to the Vietnam Electricity Group.

Why It Matters

The opening of this facility reflects a broader trend of Danish companies prioritizing sustainability and renewable energy access in their manufacturing decisions. Vietnam's status as having Southeast Asia’s largest installed solar and wind capacity at the end of 2024 played a central role in attracting this investment. The facility's reliance on 100 percent renewable electricity and recycled materials aligns with global shifts toward reducing carbon footprints in the jewelry industry.

This expansion also reflects Ho Chi Minh City's growing role as a hub for foreign direct investment, particularly in sustainable manufacturing. With a 40 percent increase in certified green buildings in 2025 and a workforce that increasingly prefers environmentally sustainable jobs, the city is positioning itself as a leader in green industrial development. Pandora's move follows similar investments by other Danish firms, suggesting a sustained interest in Vietnam's manufacturing capabilities and renewable energy infrastructure.