Toms Didrihsons, Chairman of the Board of Orkla Latvija, noted that by building the new Laima plant, it was possible to create a building that is adapted to production technologies, rather than adapting production technologies to the building. The new Laima plant in Ādaži will also have a modern product development laboratory.
The company also noted that with the commissioning of the plant, the relocation, installation and production of test products will start, which has been postponed due to the state of emergency declared and the safety measures in place, but will be implemented as soon as possible.
Representatives of Orkla Latvija also pointed out that the new plant will provide the company with growth opportunities, opening wide opportunities for cooperation with other companies of the Orkla Group. It is planned that the plant will employ more than 100 workers.
Mihails Peščinskis, project manager of the construction company “Merks”, pointed out that “Laima” ‘s new production plant consists of five buildings – a two – storey production building and several buildings for technical needs with a total area of 7820 square meters.
“One of the biggest challenges in the project was the construction of the engineering systems. They are very large, labor-intensive and adapted to the four different temperature and humidity regimes required for the confectionery production process. Although the building may seem simple from the outside, also energy efficiency class A, “Peščinskis said.
With the establishment of the new factory, it will be possible to double the production volumes compared to the existing ones, if there is a corresponding demand. It was originally planned that the production process at the new Laima plant could start in the fourth quarter of 2020.
On April 17, 2019, the management of Orkla Latvija signed a contract worth 8.9 million euros with Merks for the construction of the Laima plant in Ādaži. Construction began on April 24, 2019.
“Laima” assortment currently consists of more than 200 different chocolate sweets.
It has also been reported that there will be another Orkla Latvija plant on the land in Ādaži, next to the Laima plant, which will specialize in the production of biscuits and waffles. It is planned to open it in 2022. A total of 13 hectares of land were purchased for the establishment of both plants in Ādaži, of which the biscuit and waffle plant will occupy the largest part.
The total turnover of the confectionery manufacturer, as well as the confectionery manufacturer Orkla Confectionery & Snacks Latvija and the owner of the brands Spilva and Gutta Orkla Foods Latvija, Orkla Latvija in 2018 was 116.092 million euros, which is about 3.1% more than a year earlier. The company’s financial results for 2019 have not been published yet.
In August 2014, the Norwegian company “Orkla” acquired the concern “NP Foods”, while in October it decided to merge “NP Foods”, JSC “Laima”, JSC “Staburadze” and JSC “Latfood” into one company called SIA “Orkla Confectionery & Snacks Latvija “, but SIA” Spilva “and AS” Gutta “were merged into a company called” Orkla Foods Latvija “.
