Lilly sale to Evonik seen as "win-win"

LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - Many in the community see the sale of Eli Lilly and Company's Tippecanoe Laboratories to Evonik as the best possible outcome for the facility.

Greater Lafayette Commerce President Joe Seaman called the sale a "win-win" for Lilly employees and the community.

"It's almost a perfect storm. I mean, what we have is employees that are offered their jobs at the same pay, same bonus targets, benefits equal or greater than what they currently have, and Lilly is giving all of them a severance bonus whether they go with the new company or not," Seaman said.

Seaman said he expects the transition from Lilly to Evonik will be a smooth one. 

He said he also believes Lilly's corporate giving will continue under Evonik.  Seaman said Tippecanoe Labs recently completed its United Way campaign and exceeded its goal.

"Now, think about employees who weren't sure about their job satus and the future of their company," Seaman said.  "And they raised more money and beat their goal. I really  think you're going to have a full commitment.  And it's a company, by the way, that's very similar to Eli Lilly.  It's around 40,000 employees, about $23 billion in sales. They've got some operations in the United States, but this will be a major move into the pharmaceutical arena.  This is clearly an opportunity for them to enter new markets," Seaman said.

Spokesman Jade Kas said Tippecanoe Labs’ United Way campaign goal this year was $300,000. He said that goal was met and the company is still raising funds, so the it is not yet ready to announce the exact amount raised.

Lilly's stock rose 1.7 percent today, to $33.93.