DuPont sells part of Stine-Haskell to FMC, saving 600 jobs

DuPont will sell the majority of its 600-employee Stine-Haskell Research Center in Newark to Philadelphia-based FMC Corp. as part of a multibillion-dollar asset swap. The Wilmington-based company also announced it has pushed back the expected closure date of its proposed $130 billion merger with the Dow Chemical Co. DuPont now expects the deal to be completed between Aug. 1 and Sept. 1. Originally, Dow and DuPont said the merger would be finalized in the first half of 2017.  FMC will acquire the 515-acre facility's agriculture research space, known as the Stine portion. DuPont, however, will retain the plant's Haskell side, which houses product and toxicology testing laboratories. The Haskell side will likely be transferred to one of the three spinoffs that will be created after DuPont completes the Dow merger.  FMC intends to retain all Stine-Haskell employees and will add workers.  "We absolutely do not intend any reductions in staffing," he said. "In fact, we expect to keep upgrading. People should not have any fear or questions about our strong commitment to our population working there."