Chinese manufacturing giant Midea, one of the world’s largest home appliance makers, has started the construction of a third factory in Brazil, according to China Daily.
The company says the new plant will be built in the industrial municipality of Pouso Alegre, in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais. It will cost over US$100 million to build and have an area of more than 70,000 square metres.
Midea expects the new factory to start operating in mid-2024, producing some 1.3 million appliances per year, to be sold in Brazil and regional markets. Its two other Brazilian factories, located in Manaus and Canoas, produce microwave ovens and domestic and commercial air-conditioning equipment.
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China is Brazil’s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade volume reaching US$171.49 billion last year. Beijing also has some US$100 billion tied up in Brazilian renewable energy projects and infrastructure.
Midea’s announcement was timed to coincide with the visit to Beijing last week of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The Brazilian leader was warmly received by his Chinese counterpart President Xi Jinping and the two countries inked some 15 economic and trade deals.
Headquartered in the Greater Bay Area manufacturing hub of Foshan, Midea employs approximately 150,000 people in China and overseas and has some 200 subsidiaries and more than 60 overseas branches.
