Port of Brunswick to handle Toyota Venzas

   Toyota said Tuesday it will begin exporting U.S.-assembled Venza autos to Russia and the Ukraine via the Port of Brunswick, Ga.
   Colonel’s Island Terminal at the Port of Brunswick handled a record 612,489 auto and machinery units in 2012, up from 497,404 units in the previous year. Toyota is a new client for the Georgia Ports Authority.
   The Port of Brunswick handles about 10 percent of all U.S. roll-on/roll-off trade, and 12 percent of U.S. ro/ro imports. The port ranks third in the nation for auto and machinery trade, serving nearly two dozen domestic and foreign carmakers, as well as heavy equipment producers.
   The Venza shipments, beginning this year, are expected to build on Toyota’s all-time record export of more than 124,000 U.S.-assembled vehicles to 21 global markets in 2012, an increase of 45 percent over the prior year.
   Once production begins in April, Toyota expects to export about 5,000 Venza vehicles per year to Russia and the Ukraine. These vehicles will be built at the company’s Georgetown, Ky. plant. The Georgetown plant, which employs 6,600, is the company’s largest manufacturing facility outside of Japan. – Chris Dupin