Chemical Companies Controlled by Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe Received As Much As £70m in British State Aid Over the Past Four Years
Before this week's £50m government bailout for its Grangemouth facility, industrial firms controlled by tycoon Sir Jim Ratcliffe were already awarded as much as £70m in British government support during the previous four-year period.
Latest Disclosures and Bailout Package
According to government disclosures released this week, public funding to the Ineos group in the last year alone was between £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the company has obtained between £28m and £70m.
Authorities intervened this week to grant Ineos with £50m to prop up its Scottish ethylene plant, concerned that without it the UK would lose its last remaining facility manufacturing ethylene—a vital raw material for plastics. The government also backed a £75m loan guarantee, while Ineos pledged to invest £30m of its own funds.
Plant Closure and Wider Challenges
This support arrives following Ineos closed the neighbouring oil refinery in late 2024, costing 400 jobs—a move described as a significant setback to the local community and a challenge for the government.
Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, is understood to have asked for government help in October. This appeal comes at a time when the expansive Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has been under considerable economic strain, in part due to soaring energy costs in the wake of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Reflecting increasing concern over its ability to manage debt, Fitch Ratings downgraded Ineos's debt rating in September. Ratcliffe has also had to commit significant funds into his off-road vehicle venture and efforts to revitalise Manchester United, in which he holds a partial ownership.
Form of Support and Company Statements
The majority of the earlier government support was delivered in the form of tax breaks in exchange for “voluntary agreements to curb consumption and CO2 output.” The value of these relief schemes for Ineos's plants in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than precise figures.
An Ineos representative stated the aid did not represent “special treatment” for the company, but was “granted based on strict criteria, and open to any UK business that meets the requirements.”
Although Ratcliffe publicly welcomed the £50m support in an official statement, Ineos also released more critical comments. In these, the billionaire strongly criticised government policy, including carbon taxes paid by industrial users.
“The answer is NOT decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” Ratcliffe wrote. “Lacking a robust manufacturing base, the economy will continue to decline. High energy costs and punitive carbon charges are driving industry out of the UK at an alarming rate.”
Speaking elsewhere, Ratcliffe described carbon taxes as “the most idiotic tax in the world,” contending they place UK plants at a disadvantage against foreign rivals. It is noted that most chemicals and plastics are not covered from the UK's planned carbon import tax.
Future Environmental Pledges
The Ineos spokesperson added: “Ineos has invested over £400m at Grangemouth in the last five years to maintain its status as one of the most productive chemical plants in Europe and to safeguard skilled jobs. The UK chemicals sector has had a brutal year, yet everyone relies on this industry every day. Should we fail to manufacture these essential materials in the UK, they are imported instead, often from higher-carbon production abroad.”
A senior Ineos executive, head of sustainability for the company's Olefins & Polymers division, indicated the Grangemouth money would be used to enhance energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and boost overall performance.
He explained the site, which uses an processing unit utilising North Sea gas and imported liquefied petroleum gas, had been under “extreme pressure” from surging energy costs and the UK's carbon taxes.
It has also been reported that Ineos has in the past obtained significant tax breaks from the EU, worth hundreds of millions of euros—interestingly while Ratcliffe was a leading supporter of the campaign for the UK to leave the EU.