Wilmington, DE – The Chemours Company announced today that it plans to make the City of Wilmington the permanent home of its global corporate headquarters. The company, which plans to employ 900 people in Delaware, was spun off from DuPont in the summer of 2015. Their offices are currently in the DuPont Building on Rodney Square.
Press Release
“Today, Chemours is announcing that it will locate its global headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware.
“While we like to think of ourselves as a 200-year-old start-up, we’ve been an independent, publicly traded company for only just over a year now,” said President and CEO Mark Vergnano. “We’ve accomplished a good deal in a short time, standing up Chemours and making a host of decisions that ensure a sound and prosperous future. We have considered a number of locations for our world headquarters, but in the end it came down to what locale makes the most financial sense, offers our current workforce the right combination of amenities and conveniences, and allows us to attract great talent. Wilmington is that place, and we look forward to being part of its future growth.”
Chemours began evaluating headquarters location options more than 6 months ago with Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania all under active consideration. The company followed a disciplined evaluation process against a range of criteria, including quality of life for employees, access to a strong talent pool, and a positive, long-term financial case for the company.
“Chemours has a first-rate workforce, and the state of Delaware has a rich talent pool, so we believe Delaware’s a great place for maintaining our superb employee base. That’s a competitive advantage for us,” Vergnano added.
Recent changes to the state’s corporate tax structure brought about by the Delaware Competes Act, which was approved earlier this year with overwhelming, bi-partisan support of the Delaware legislature, were key components in Chemours’ decision.
“Today’s announcement is the result of strong support from Delaware’s elected officials at the federal, state and local levels, notably Governor Jack Markell, who spearheaded passage of the Delaware Competes Act along with Senate President Pro-Tem Patricia Blevins and House Majority Leader Valerie Longhurst. Solid relationships with Wilmington Mayor Dennis Williams, United States Senators Tom Carper, and Chris Coons, as well as Congressman John Carney also helped drive our decision. Chemours has enjoyed substantive dialogue with these leaders about issues of importance to our company, employees and future,” said Vergnano.”
Reactions To Decision
“I know that Chemours leaders conducted a detailed search and looked at several locations, and I am pleased that they have chosen Wilmington as the best option to support the success of their company,” said Governor Jack Markell. “This decision reflects the value of our top quality workforce, the ability to access key global markets from our state, and the responsiveness of government at all levels – all of which helps make Delaware a great place for employers to achieve long term growth.”
“Chemours has agreed with what our Governor, our congressional delegation, and many Delawareans have been saying all along: staying in the City of Wilmington is the best decision for the company,” said U.S. Senator Tom Carper. “Delaware may be small, but we show our strength by mobilizing quickly to create a nurturing environment for businesses to come and stay here. The state passed landmark legislation to modernize our tax structure, and in Congress, we worked to reform the Toxic Substances Control Act, giving businesses like Chemours the predictability they need. Keeping Chemours in Delaware, along with two of the three DuPont headquarters operations, is a major accomplishment, but this is no time to rest on our laurels. We have good paying, traditional manufacturing jobs at Chemours and other companies like it, and we must continue our tradition of working together to preserve and grow them.”
“I welcome Chemours’ announcement that the company is committed to remaining in Delaware,” said Senator Chris Coons. “Chemours and its hundreds of Delaware employees are a critical part of the innovation economy in our state, and today’s announcement demonstrates the strength of our workforce and our business climate as the company plans for the future. I look forward to Chemours’ continued growth in Delaware.”
“This was the best decision for Chemours, for Wilmington, and for the hundreds of Delawareans who go to work there every day,” said Congressman John Carney. “Delaware’s world-class talent will continue to help Chemours innovate and grow their company for long-term success. Today’s announcement is welcome news as we keep working to grow job opportunities and Delaware’s economy.”
An announcement confirming the company’s commitment to remain in Wilmington cited the high performance of current employees and optimism for future ability to recruit in Delaware as key advantages that helped lead to this decision. Chemours leaders also noted that the Delaware Competes Act, which reformed the state’s corporate income tax, was an additional key factor.
“When we passed the Competes Act, we reformed our corporate tax formula so that it matched our surrounding states, making Delaware able to compete with our region,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Patricia Blevins. “Today’s announcement from Chemours that they plan to stay in Wilmington largely due to this legislation shows that our decision paid off by preserving hundreds of jobs.”
“Chemours has roots that run deep in Delaware, and I’m pleased that they will continue to operate here in the state, keeping good-paying jobs and an important industry here,” said House Majority Leader Valerie Longhurst. “We all were concerned about the news that Chemours could leave, but Delaware being a small state, we were able to respond quickly and take action to ensure that they remain here and that hundreds of residents’ jobs are not shipped outside the state. This will help keep Delaware’s unemployment rate well below the national average.”