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Breen
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Good morning,

Delaware received some good news when DowDuPont. announced plans to expand operations of a long-running product line in the Newark.

The company will move production of Kalrez to a  bigger site on Ruthar Drive east of the city. Employment will remain around 200, but production will be ramped up at the new location.

The announcement, which was warmly received by government leaders, demonstrates that DuPont is not walking away from manufacturing in Delaware.

One would guess that the company might have shopped around for the best deal, but chose to keep the current workforce in place.

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There are at least faint signs that current CEO Ed Breen has a soft spot for northern Delaware since two of the three upcoming  DowDuPont spinoffs will be headquartered in northern Delaware. Investments are also being made in the experimental station after a major downsizing.

At the same time, one can expect a relentless focus on the bottom line. The next Nelson Peltz is lurking in the weeds and will pounce on a spun-off DuPont if earnings prove to be anemic.

Breen disclosed that 10 percent of the businesses that are slated to become DuPont will be sold off as part of a plan to maximize returns and build a more focused company.

The DuPont site that will stay in the Newark area seems to be doing well. That’s good news for northern Delaware. Now the focus needs to be on getting more mid-sized plants to come to the First State while making sure existing companies feel welcome.

Have a great weekend. The newsletter returns on Monday. – Doug Rainey, Editor

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