Industrial Companies Controlled by Tycoon Jim Ratcliffe Obtained Up to £70m in British Government Support Over the Last Four-Year Period
Prior to this week's £50m government bailout for its Grangemouth facility, chemical companies controlled by billionaire Jim Ratcliffe were already awarded as much as £70m in UK state aid over the past four years.
Recent Revelations and Financial Support
According to official data released recently, state aid to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the most recent year was between £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the company has received a total of £28m and £70m.
Authorities intervened on Tuesday to provide Ineos with £50m to prop up its Scottish ethylene plant, concerned that otherwise the UK would lose its last remaining facility manufacturing ethylene—a critical feedstock for plastics. Officials additionally supported a £75m credit guarantee, while Ineos committed to invest £30m of its own funds.
Refinery Shutdown and Broader Context
This support arrives after Ineos shut down the neighbouring oil refinery in late 2024, resulting in the loss of 400 jobs—a move described as a huge blow to the area and a challenge for the government.
Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, reportedly asked for government help in October. The request comes at a time when the wide-ranging Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has been under considerable economic strain, in part due to soaring energy costs following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Reflecting increasing concern over its financial health, the credit rating agency lowered Ineos's credit rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest substantial resources into his Ineos Grenadier automotive project and efforts to revitalise Manchester United, in which he holds a minority stake.
Nature of Aid and Official Responses
Most the earlier government support came in the form of tax breaks in return for “commitments to curb consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.” Figures for these tax breaks 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 “favourable terms” for the company, but was “granted based on strict criteria, and open to any UK business that qualifies.”
While Ratcliffe publicly welcomed the £50m support in an official statement, Ineos also released more critical comments. In these, the industrialist launched a broadside against government policy, specifically carbon taxes levied on industrial users.
“The solution is not decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” he stated. “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 “an extremely foolish levy in the world,” contending they place UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against international competitors. Currently, most chemicals and plastics are excluded from the UK's planned carbon border adjustment mechanism.
Investment and Environmental Pledges
The Ineos spokesperson further stated: “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. British industry has had a very difficult year, yet everyone relies on this industry every day. If we don't produce 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 chemicals unit, said the Grangemouth money would be used to enhance energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and upgrade plant performance.
He noted the site, which uses an ethylene cracker running on North Sea gas and imported liquefied petroleum gas, had been under “extreme pressure” from rocketing energy costs and the UK's carbon taxes.
It has also been reported that Ineos has previously received significant tax breaks from the EU, valued at hundreds of millions of euros—interestingly while Ratcliffe was a leading supporter of the campaign for the UK to leave the EU.
