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Delaware to Provide Millions for DowDuPont

10.03.2016 -

The US state of Delaware, corporate headquarters of chemical giant DuPont, is piling cash on the table to be funneled especially into the businesses remaining in the state after the planned merger with Dow Chemical and the post-merger split.

In the latest move, the Delaware Council on Development Finance has approved a five-year incentive package worth $9.6 million in public money to be paid to DuPont as it restructures prior to the merger.

The funds would also benefit the new agriculture and specialty chemicals companies DowDuPont has agreed to locate in Delaware. Some $6 million in matching funds would be made available for up to 3% of capital expenditure in the state.

To receive all of the monies, the companies would have to spend at least $200 million in the state over a five-year period.

An additional $3.6 million grant, from the coffers of a state strategic fund created by Governor Jack Markell, has been promised to support employment, and Delaware is expected to smile warmly – as far as it has the revenues – on DuPont’s request for reduction of property taxes.

Separately, officials in the state’s New Castle County are said to be planning a five-year $7.5 million incentive package for DuPont.

The motivation behind Delaware’s generosity is to keep jobs in the state that would be lost if any of the operations were located or invested elsewhere. Its Economic Development Office has calculated that $20 million in revenue could be lost over three years in personal income taxes from laid-off workers alone.

As DuPont proceeds with its $700 million restructuring scheme prior to joining forces with Dow, CEO Edward Breen has announced plans to eliminate 1,700 jobs, equal to 28% of the Wilmington-based company’s current Delaware workforce.

According to DuPont’s filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the two carve-outs from the merger of the two chemical giants are expected to generate more revenue than the Delaware company in its current form.

The third post-merger carve-out, the material science company, will be based at Dow’s current headquarters in Midland, Michigan. No details have emerged as yet as to what incentives the state of Michigan may offer.