Georgetown, Ky., plant to build Camry hybrid

Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America (TMMNA) today announced the company's first North American gas-electric hybrid production will be at its Georgetown, Ky., plant—Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky, Inc. (TMMK)—when production of a Camry hybrid begins in late 2006.

TMMK will have the capacity to build approximately 48,000 Camry hybrid vehicles per year. Adding the hybrid production will include a $10 million investment in the plant.

TMMK was established in 1986 and is Toyota's largest plant in North America. It employs approximately 7,000 and currently builds the Camry, Avalon, and Solara. The plant has the capacity to build 500,000 vehicles annually. Since its inception, TMMK has built nearly six million vehicles, and the plant's current investment is nearly $5.3 billion.

Toyota expects capacity and employment to stay the same at TMMK with the addition of the Camry hybrid. The production will take place on the plant's existing lines, and no new construction is planned.