Industrial Firms Owned by Tycoon Jim Ratcliffe Obtained As Much As £70m in British State Aid Over the Last Four-Year Period
Before this week's £50m government bailout for its Scottish plant, chemical companies controlled by billionaire Jim Ratcliffe were already awarded as much as £70m in British government support over the past four years.
Recent Disclosures and Bailout Package
According to government disclosures published recently, public funding to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the most recent year ranged from £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the conglomerate has obtained between £28m and £70m.
The government stepped in on Tuesday to grant Ineos with £50m to prop up its Grangemouth operations, concerned that without it the UK would cease to have its last remaining facility manufacturing ethylene—a critical feedstock 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 intervention arrives following Ineos closed the adjacent oil refinery in late 2024, resulting in the loss of 400 jobs—a move described as a significant setback to the local community and a political problem for the government.
The billionaire, with an estimated net worth of $14.5bn, is understood to have asked for government assistance in October. This appeal comes at a time when the expansive Ineos group, under the control of the 73-year-old, has faced considerable economic strain, in part due to soaring energy costs in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Reflecting increasing concern over its financial health, Fitch Ratings downgraded Ineos's debt rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest substantial resources into his Ineos Grenadier automotive project and the turnaround of the football club, in which he holds a minority stake.
Nature of Aid and Company Statements
The majority of the previous state aid was delivered in the form of tax breaks in exchange for “commitments to reduce energy use and CO2 output.” Figures for these relief schemes for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than exact amounts.
An Ineos spokesperson stated the aid did not represent “special treatment” for the company, but was “granted based on strict criteria, and available to any UK business that meets the requirements.”
Although Ratcliffe thanked the government for the £50m support in an official statement, Ineos also released sharper remarks. In these, the billionaire launched a broadside against government policy, specifically carbon taxes levied on industrial users.
“The solution is not decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” Ratcliffe wrote. “Lacking a robust manufacturing base, the economy will continue to decline. High energy costs and burdensome carbon levies are driving industry out of the UK at an alarming rate.”
In further comments, Ratcliffe labelled carbon taxes as “an extremely foolish levy in the world,” arguing they put UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against international competitors. Currently, most chemicals and plastics are excluded from the UK's initial carbon import tax.
Investment and Environmental Pledges
The Ineos spokesperson added: “Ineos has invested over £400m at Grangemouth in the last five years to keep it 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. If we don't produce these critical products in the UK, they are brought in from overseas, 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 upgrade 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 surging energy costs and the UK's carbon taxes.
It has also been reported that Ineos has in the past obtained substantial 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 exit the European Union.
