🔗 Share this article

Before this week's £50m government bailout for its Scottish plant, industrial firms controlled by tycoon Jim Ratcliffe were already awarded as much as £70m in British government support during the previous four-year period.

Latest Revelations and Bailout Package

Based on official data published recently, state aid to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the most recent year was between £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the company has obtained a total of £28m and £70m.

The government stepped in this week to provide Ineos with £50m to prop up its Grangemouth operations, fearing that without it the UK would lose its last remaining facility producing ethylene—a critical raw material for plastics. The government also backed a £75m credit guarantee, while Ineos committed to invest £30m of its private capital.

Refinery Shutdown and Broader Context

This support comes after Ineos closed the neighbouring oil refinery in September 2024, costing 400 jobs—a move described as a huge blow to the local community and a challenge for the government.

Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, reportedly requested government assistance in October. This appeal comes at a time when the expansive Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has faced significant financial pressure, partly due to sharply increased energy costs in the wake of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Reflecting growing unease over its financial health, the credit rating agency downgraded Ineos's credit rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest significant funds into his off-road vehicle venture and efforts to revitalise Manchester United, in which he holds a partial ownership.

Nature of Aid and Company Statements

The majority of the earlier government support came in the form of tax relief in exchange for “commitments to curb consumption and CO2 output.” Figures for these relief schemes for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than precise figures.

An Ineos representative stated the aid did not constitute “special treatment” for the company, but was “granted based on strict criteria, and available to any UK business that qualifies.”

While Ratcliffe thanked the government for the £50m support in an announcement, Ineos separately issued sharper remarks. In these, the billionaire strongly criticised government policy, specifically carbon taxes paid by industrial users.

“The solution is not decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” he stated. “Without a strong manufacturing base, the economy will continue to decline. Soaring power prices and punitive carbon charges are driving industry out of the UK at an alarming rate.”

In further comments, Ratcliffe described carbon taxes as “an extremely foolish levy in the world,” contending they place UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against foreign rivals. Currently, most chemicals and plastics are not covered from the UK's initial carbon border adjustment mechanism.

Future Sustainability Claims

The Ineos representative added: “Ineos has invested over £400m at Grangemouth in the last five years to keep it as one of the most efficient chemical plants in Europe and to protect skilled jobs. The UK chemicals sector has had a very difficult 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 new funding would be used to improve energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, and boost plant performance.

He noted the site, which uses an processing unit utilising North Sea gas and imported liquefied petroleum gas, had been under “intense strain” from rocketing energy costs and the UK's carbon taxes.

Records show that Ineos has in the past obtained substantial tax breaks from the EU, valued at hundreds of millions of euros—interestingly while Ratcliffe was a prominent backer of the campaign for the UK to leave the EU.