Chemical Companies Owned by Billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe Received As Much As £70m in UK Government Support Over the Last Four-Year Period
Before the recent £50m government bailout for its Grangemouth facility, industrial firms under the ownership of tycoon Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted up to £70m in UK state aid during the previous four-year period.
Recent Revelations and Financial Support
According to official data published recently, public funding to the Ineos group in the most recent year was between £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the company has obtained a total of £28m and £70m.
The government stepped in on Tuesday to provide Ineos with £50m to support its Grangemouth operations, fearing that otherwise the UK would lose its last remaining facility producing ethylene—a vital raw material for plastics. The government also backed a £75m credit guarantee, while Ineos pledged to invest £30m of its own funds.
Refinery Shutdown and Wider Challenges
This support comes following Ineos shut down 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.
The billionaire, with an estimated net worth of $14.5bn, reportedly requested government help in October. This appeal coincides with the expansive Ineos group, under the control of the 73-year-old, has faced significant financial pressure, partly due to soaring energy costs following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Reflecting increasing concern over its financial health, Fitch Ratings downgraded Ineos's credit rating in September. Ratcliffe has also had to commit substantial resources into his Ineos Grenadier automotive project and efforts to revitalise the football club, in which he holds a minority stake.
Nature of Aid and Official Responses
The majority of the previous state aid was delivered in the form of tax breaks in return for “voluntary agreements to curb consumption and CO2 output.” Figures for these tax breaks for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than exact amounts.
An Ineos spokesperson said the aid did not represent “favourable terms” for the company, but was “granted based on strict criteria, and open to any UK business that meets the requirements.”
While Ratcliffe thanked the government for the £50m support in an announcement, Ineos separately issued more critical comments. In these, the billionaire strongly criticised government policy, including carbon taxes levied on industrial users.
“The answer is NOT decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” he stated. “Without a strong manufacturing base, the economy will falter. 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 put UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against international competitors. It is noted that most chemicals and plastics are excluded from the UK's initial carbon import tax.
Future Environmental Pledges
The Ineos representative further stated: “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. British industry has had a very difficult year, yet society depends on this industry every day. Should we fail to manufacture these essential materials in the UK, they are brought in from overseas, often from higher-carbon production abroad.”
Colin Pritchard, head of sustainability for the company's chemicals unit, indicated the Grangemouth money would be used to enhance energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, and upgrade plant performance.
He noted the site, which uses an processing unit utilising North Sea gas and US-sourced 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 previously received substantial tax breaks from the EU, worth hundreds of millions of euros—interestingly while Ratcliffe was a prominent backer of the campaign for the UK to leave the EU.