Port of Hueneme Adds Suzuki to Client Base
Solidifying its position as one of the West Coast’s premier destinations for foreign auto makers, the Port of Hueneme expects to top last year’s record-setting import totals after Suzuki Motors decided to use the facility as its new regional hub.
After more than a year of negotiations between the Japanese auto maker and Oxnard’s Pacific Vehicle Processors, Suzuki agreed to move its operations from the Port of Los Angeles to Hueneme.
“One of our goals over the last few years has been to diversify our client base,” said port marketing director Kam Quarles. “This move is in line with that and is definitely the type of business relationship we’ve been trying to accomplish.”
The first shipment of 600 cars arrived Friday. Port officials said they expect Suzuki to import as many as 10,000 cars a year through the facility, a 7.4% increase in total auto imports for the port.
Suzuki’s decision to use the Port of Hueneme comes as part of an agreement reached with Pacific Vehicle Processors, which will handle the inspection and final preparation of Suzuki imports for sale.
The company already prepares autos for Jaguar, Volvo, Mitsubishi and General Motors.
Jim Kilpatrick, general manager for marketing at the company, said Suzuki’s decision to relocate was based as much on PVP’s reputation as it was on the port’s.
“People in the auto industry [already] know that the port is devoted to vehicle imports and that they can get the kind of service they might not be able to enjoy at some of the larger ports,” he said.
In recent years, the 90-acre Port of Hueneme has tried to grab a larger share of foreign trade by molding itself into a niche berth for non-container traffic such as cars, fruits and vegetables.
Those efforts have already resulted in a string of successes. Late last year, it opened the International Agricultural Gateway, which increased the port’s size by 50%. It also signed a large European fertilizer producer to use the facility as its distribution base.
Last year the port cleared 1 million tons of cargo and moved more than 135,000 cars.
Port officials expect to surpass that mark this year with the addition of Suzuki.
“We’re definitely setting a pace to beat last year,” Quarles said. “I can’t really speculate as to how much, but it will be substantial.”
Even more important, he added, is that Suzuki’s relocation will help buoy the port’s financial position.
With greater diversification, port officials no longer have to hinge their success to that of a few client companies.
In addition, the port has been focusing on increasing its list of Pacific Rim clients, and officials hope that Suzuki’s decision will set an example for other Asian companies looking to increase exports to the United States.
“The Pacific Rim is a natural for us, and I think a lot of companies are starting to realize that,” Quarles said. “Because we are small and because we specialize in certain kinds of traffic, we can accommodate some companies in ways that other ports can’t.”
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