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Economy of Delaware

This article is intended to give an overview of the economy of Delaware.

Affluence

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Average sale price for new & existing homes (in US$)[1]
DE County March 2010 March 2011
New Castle 229,000 216,000
Sussex 323,000 296,000
Kent 186,000 178,000

According to a 2013 study by Phoenix Marketing International, Delaware had the ninth-largest number of millionaires per capita in the United States, with a ratio of 6.20 percent.[2]

Agriculture

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"Picking Peaches in Delaware" from an 1878 issue of Harper's Weekly

Delaware's agricultural output consists of poultry, nursery stock, soybeans, dairy products and corn.

Energy

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Solar power

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This section is an excerpt from Solar power in Delaware.[edit]
 
Solar installation, New Castle

Solar power in Delaware is small industry. Delaware had 150 MW of total installed capacity in 2020. The largest solar farms in the state included the 10 MW Dover Sun Park and the 12 MW Milford Solar Farm.[3]

The expansion of Bruce A. Henry Solar Farm near Georgetown in Sussex County from 23 to 40 acres was completed in 2020.[4][5]

In a 2012 study, a typical 5 kW system will pay for itself in five years, and go on to provide a savings of $37,837 over the balance of its 25-year life. It is estimated that 19% of all electricity use in Delaware can be provided by rooftop solar panels.[6] The state's renewable portfolio standard requires 0.4% from solar in 2012, 0.6% in 2013, 3.5% from solar by 2025, and 25% from renewable sources.[7]

Net metering is available for residential customers up to 25 kW and others from 100 kW to 2 MW depending on type of customer and the utility. Excess generation is credited at retail rate to next month's bill and optionally paid once a year at energy supply rate (normally referred to as "avoided cost").

Wind power

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This section is an excerpt from Wind power in Delaware.[edit]
 
Wind potential in Delaware

The potential of on-shore wind power in Delaware is minimal, having a potential of generating at most 22 GWh/year.[8] Delaware's principal wind potential is from offshore wind. A 2012 assessment estimates that 15,038 MW of offshore wind turbines could generate 60,654 GWh/year.[8] Delaware generated 11,522 GWh from all generating sources in 2011.[9]

2 MW of large scale wind capacity has been constructed in Delaware. A single 256-foot tall, 210-ton turbine at the University of Delaware in Lewes was built in 2010 for generating and educational purposes.[10] It produced 5 GWh of electricity in 2015.[11] There are no projects under construction, but there is a planned offshore wind power project that would produce 120 MW

The state of Delaware ran a request for proposals (RFP) during 2006-2007 that is notable as the first known RFP, world-wide, in which offshore wind power competed equally against coal and natural gas power alternatives.[12]

Industries

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As of October 2015, the state's unemployment rate was 5.1%.[13]

The state's largest employers are:[dubious – discuss]

Dover Air Force Base, located next to the state capital of Dover, is one of the largest Air Force bases in the country and is a major employer in Delaware. In addition to its other responsibilities in the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command, this air base serves as the entry point and mortuary for American military personnel and some U.S. government civilians who die overseas.

Industrial decline

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Since the mid-2000s, Delaware has seen the departure of the state's automotive manufacturing industry (General Motors Wilmington Assembly and Chrysler Newark Assembly), the corporate buyout of a major bank holding company (MBNA), the departure of the state's steel industry (Evraz Claymont Steel), the bankruptcy of a fiber mill (National Vulcanized Fibre),[14] and the diminishing presence of AstraZeneca in Wilmington.[15][16]

In late 2015, DuPont announced that 1,700 employees, nearly a third of its footprint in Delaware, would be laid off in early 2016.[17] The merger of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. and Dow Chemical Company into DowDuPont took place on September 1, 2017.[18][19][20][21]

Incorporation in Delaware

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Main article: Delaware General Corporation Law

More than 50% of all U.S. publicly traded companies and 63% of the Fortune 500 are incorporated in Delaware.[22] The state's attractiveness as a corporate haven is largely because of its business-friendly corporation law. Franchise taxes on Delaware corporations supply about one-fifth of its state revenue.[23] Although "USA (Delaware)" ranked as the world's most opaque jurisdiction on the Tax Justice Network's 2009 Financial Secrecy Index,[24] the same group's 2011 Index ranks the USA fifth and does not specify Delaware.[25] In Delaware, there are more than a million registered corporations,[26] meaning there are more corporations than people.

Food and drink

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Title 4, chapter 7 of the Delaware Code stipulates that alcoholic liquor only be sold in specifically licensed establishments, and only between 9:00 am and 1:00 am.[27] Until 2003, Delaware was among the several states enforcing blue laws and banned the sale of liquor on Sunday.[28]

References

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  1. ^ Ruth, Eric (April 15, 2010). "Delaware housing: Home prices slide in all three counties; sales in NCCo, Kent down from year ago". The News Journal. Delaware. Delaware Online. Archived from the original on April 3, 2014. Retrieved March 31, 2014.(subscription required)
  2. ^ Frank, Robert (January 15, 2014). "Top states for millionaires per capita". CNBC. CNBC.com. Archived from the original on January 22, 2014. Retrieved October 28, 2016.
  3. ^ "Delaware Solar". seia.org. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
  4. ^ Petree, Rob (January 22, 2020). "DEC and Constellation Complete Expansion of Sussex County Solar Farm". WGMD. Retrieved 2020-01-27.
  5. ^ Yaffe, Edi (December 5, 2015). "A Visit to the Bruce A. Henry Solar Energy Farm". Wharton Public Policy Initiative. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  6. ^ Witkin, Jim. "Report Argues for a Decentralized System of Renewable Power Generation". NYTimes.com. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
  7. ^ Renewables Portfolio Standard Archived 2012-05-03 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ a b Renewable Energy Technical Potential
  9. ^ Electric Power Monthly February 2012 Table 5.4.B.
  10. ^ "Wind turbine in Lewes produces wide reaching research".
  11. ^ "U.S. Wind Industry Fourth Quarter 2016 Market Report". U.S. Energy Information Administration. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
  12. ^ "Offshore Wind Power Delaware Project".
  13. ^ "Delaware Economy at a Glance" (database report). United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Archived from the original on March 15, 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  14. ^ "National Vulcanized Fibre Corp. site in Yorklyn". Archived from the original on August 3, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  15. ^ "AstraZeneca lays off workers at Delaware headquarters". Archived from the original on February 5, 2016. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  16. ^ "Delaware officials concerned about AstraZeneca, DuPont threats". Archived from the original on February 5, 2016. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  17. ^ "DuPont to cut 1,700 jobs in Delaware in January". Archived from the original on December 31, 2015. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  18. ^ "DuPont merger called 'catastrophic' for Delaware". Archived from the original on December 17, 2015. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  19. ^ "DuPont merger: A 'sad day' for Delaware". Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  20. ^ "DuPont-Dow merger 'catastrophic' for Delaware". Archived from the original on December 31, 2015. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  21. ^ "Chemours will lay off 400, including some in Delaware". Archived from the original on February 3, 2016. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  22. ^ "Delaware Division of Corporations". Government of DE. Archived from the original on August 10, 2011. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
  23. ^ "Delaware 2007 Fiscal Notebook – State General Fund Revenues by Category (F.Y. 2002 – F.Y. 2005)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 16, 2011. Retrieved August 17, 2011.
  24. ^ "Financial Secrecy Index" (PDF). Tax Justice Network. November 1, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 26, 2015. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  25. ^ "Financial Secrecy Index" (PDF). Tax Justice Network. October 4, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 4, 2015. Retrieved June 24, 2015.
  26. ^ "State of Delaware – Division of Corporations". Archived from the original on August 10, 2011. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
  27. ^ "Chapter 7. Regulatory Provisions". Online Delaware Code. Delaware General Assembly. Archived from the original on June 26, 2013. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  28. ^ Aaron, Nathans (July 9, 2011). "Del. package stores hope to benefit from Md. tax". The News Journal. New Castle, Delaware. Archived from the original on August 21, 2012. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
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