US appliance manufacturer Whirlpool Corporation announced it will invest more than $160 million to expand its plant located in the northern city of Ramos Arizpe, Coahuila, to produce 300,000 refrigerators a year for the US market, according to local media reports.
Whirlpool has three production plants in Mexico. In the northern city of Apodaca, Nuevo Leon produces mainly refrigerators and washing machines. In the central city of Celaya, Guanajuato, it produces stoves, compact refrigerators, and semi-automatic washing machines, and in Ramos Arizpe, it produces duplex refrigerators.
The expansion will enable the company to produce “French Door” refrigerators. According to the company, Mexico will be the only country that manufactures this model. Between 90 and 95 percent of the production will be exported to the United States and Canada.
The new plant will be 34,000 square meters. Ramos Arizpe currently employs 3,000 workers, a figure that will increase to 4,000 workers with the expansion. In total, Whirlpool Mexico will have 11,500 workers.