Setting the Stage

2023 developments prime Delaware for further prominence and growth in 2024

BY KURT FOREMAN

DELAWARE PROSPERITY PARTNERSHIP (DPP) finished its sixth full year of operation—working in cooperation with statewide partners and investors—and is proud to have supported 64 location and expansion projects that have brought more than $1.78 billion in capital investment to Delaware since 2017. We’re also glad that these projects include more than 8,500 new and retained jobs, which helped Delaware reach its highest-ever employment total—nearly 487,000 jobs—in 2023.

As in years past, DPP-assisted projects included both businesses new to Delaware and existing Delaware businesses. For example, Georgia-based Agile Cold Storage announced in August that its first out-of-state location would be in Claymont’s First State Crossing and broke ground for the high-tech 250,000-square-foot facility in October. The $170 million project is bringing highly sought new investment and industry to Claymont along with 130 new jobs.

In October, Georgia-based Agile Cold Storage broke ground for its $170 million Claymont facility, which is bringing 130 new jobs to Delaware.

According to Agile Cold President and CEO Don Schoenl, Delaware has “delivered on every promise made” throughout the two years it took to bring the business here. He and fellow company officials are grateful for the responsiveness and attention that our state, county and local officials have provided.

Among the businesses already operating in Delaware who worked with DPP to launch expansion projects in 2023 was Evernorth Health Services’ Accredo Specialty Pharmacy. The company’s new $89.2 million, approximately 200,000-square-foot facility in Newark is replacing an existing location in New Castle and will be staffed by 87 retained workers and 132 new employees.

This project will support patients diagnosed with severe medical conditions and the providers who treat them by enabling the company, as Evernorth Pharmacy President Matt Perlberg said, “to more efficiently and effectively distribute lifesaving medications to individuals throughout the country, particularly in the Northeast.” The project will also help solidify Delaware’s status as a health care hub for the Mid-Atlantic region and beyond.

Another 2023 development in Delaware’s health care sector that DPP helped support was designation of the Greater Philadelphia Region Precision Medicine Tech Hub by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration. As a part of this effort, which aims to make our region a global leader in end-to-end precision medicine, Delaware entities now have the opportunity to apply for a portion of $70 million in federal funding.

DPP also joined with the Delaware Sustainable Chemistry Alliance and other partners throughout Delaware, Philadelphia/Southeastern Pennsylvania, and South Jersey to help establish the Mid-Atlantic Clean Hydrogen Hub under the U.S. Department of Energy’s Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs Program. DPP served as a funder and a supporter throughout the application and approval process for the endeavor, which ultimately received a $750 million federal grant.

DPP was proud to work with the Delaware Division of Small Business to win approval of the Modernization Investment Support Initiative. This business support program offers grants to help existing businesses make updates to deal with regional, national, and/or global competitiveness issues that could negatively affect Delaware operations.

Also during 2023, DPP awarded $198,000 to ventures with underrepresented founders through its third Startup302 pitch competition; assisted with several successful Site Readiness Fund applications; and conducted visits with many existing Delaware companies to better understand their needs and challenges. Additionally, DPP sponsored the attendance of Delaware startups at BIO International, the world’s largest biotech conference; completed foreign direct investment trips to India, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France; and conducted on-site and remote outreach to site selectors and other business expansion personnel across the United States.

Heading into our seventh full year of operation, DPP celebrates all that our team accomplished—thanks to the support of our investors and working in cooperation with state and regional partners—throughout 2023. We look forward to capitalizing on these successes in 2024.

Kurt Foreman is president and CEO of Delaware Prosperity Partnership.