GE Appliances expanding domestic production operations in Georgia

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A general view of the production line at GE Appliances on Aug. 13, 2025 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images for GE Appliances, a Haier company)

LAFAYETTE, Ga. - GE Appliances plans to invest more than $3 billion to expand its U.S. operations in the South, and Georgia is getting a piece of the pie.

The investment — the second-largest in the Louisville-based company’s history — is expected to add more than 1,000 jobs while ramping up domestic production and modernizing plants in the next five years.

What we know:

Earlier this year, the company said it would move production of clothes washers from China to its sprawling manufacturing complex in Louisville. The reshoring announcements come as President Donald Trump tries to lure factories back to the United States by imposing import taxes — tariffs — on foreign goods.

GE Appliances said Wednesday that the first phase of its new investment will begin at plants in five Southern states — Kentucky, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina.

The company's plant in Lafayette, Georgia will ramp up production of gas ranges previously made in Mexico.

In Alabama, six refrigerator models now made in China will soon be manufactured in Decatur.

The GE Appliances plant in Camden, South Carolina, will add production of electric and hybrid heat pump water heaters, doubling the factory’s output and employment once the project is complete, the company said. The plant now produces gas water heaters. Production of the company’s electric and hybrid water heaters — now made in China — will shift to South Carolina.

Once its new plan is fully implemented, GE Appliances will have invested $6.5 billion across its 11 U.S. manufacturing plants and nationwide distribution network since 2016, the company said.

The majority of GE Appliances’ production is already in the U.S. and the shift means only that the company will transfer more work to its domestic plants.

What they're saying:

"Our long-term strategy is about manufacturing close to our customers," said CEO Kevin Nolan. "With lean manufacturing, upskilling our workforce and automation, the math works for manufacturing in the United States."

"We are defining the future of manufacturing at GE Appliances by investing in our plants, people and communities," Nolan continued. "No other appliance company over the last decade has invested more in U.S. manufacturing than we have, and our $3 billion, five-year plan shows that our commitment to U.S. manufacturing will continue into the future."

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said that the investment shows his state’s ability to support world-class companies with a skilled workforce and the resources needed to thrive.

"GE Appliances has established Kentucky as America’s destination for advanced manufacturing and job creation, and today’s news shows this iconic company’s unwavering belief in the commonwealth and the role we play in their success," Beshear said.

Dig deeper:

The company said it’s partnering with universities, technical schools and high schools to help ensure that its plants and other facilities have a trained workforce.

"Infrastructure and tools matter, but they are not enough," said Bill Good, vice president of supply chain for GE Appliances. "America’s manufacturing renaissance will be built by people."

GE Appliances is a subsidiary of the China-based Haier company.

Overall, GE Appliances says it contributes more than $30 billion annually to the U.S. economy and supports more than 113,000 jobs – both directly and indirectly – through its operations, suppliers and distribution network.