Chemical Firms Owned by Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe Obtained Up to £70m in British State Aid Over the Last Four-Year Period
Prior to the recent £50m state rescue package for its Grangemouth facility, chemical companies under the ownership of tycoon Sir Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted as much as £70m in UK state aid during the previous four-year period.
Recent Disclosures and Bailout Package
Based on official data published recently, state aid to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the most recent year ranged from £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the company has obtained between £28m and £70m.
The government stepped in on Tuesday to provide Ineos with £50m to support its Scottish ethylene plant, concerned that without it the UK would lose its last remaining facility producing ethylene—a critical feedstock for plastics. Officials additionally supported a £75m loan guarantee, while Ineos pledged to invest £30m of its own funds.
Refinery Shutdown and Wider Challenges
This intervention comes 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 local community and a political problem for the government.
The billionaire, with an estimated net worth of $14.5bn, reportedly asked for government assistance in October. This appeal coincides with the expansive Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has been under considerable economic strain, partly due to soaring energy costs following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Reflecting increasing concern over its financial health, Fitch Ratings lowered Ineos's credit rating in September. Ratcliffe has also had to commit substantial resources into his Ineos Grenadier automotive project and the turnaround of Manchester United, in which he holds a partial ownership.
Form of Support and Official Responses
Most the previous state aid came in the form of tax breaks in return for “voluntary agreements to curb consumption and CO2 output.” Figures for these relief schemes for Ineos's plants in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than precise figures.
An Ineos spokesperson said 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.”
Although Ratcliffe publicly welcomed 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 answer is NOT decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” Ratcliffe wrote. “Without a strong manufacturing base, the economy will falter. Soaring power prices and punitive carbon charges are pushing industry out of the UK at an alarming rate.”
Speaking elsewhere, Ratcliffe labelled carbon taxes as “an extremely foolish levy in the world,” contending they place 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 border adjustment mechanism.
Investment and 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 efficient chemical plants in Europe and to safeguard skilled jobs. British industry has had a brutal year, yet society depends on this industry every day. If we don't produce these critical products in the UK, they are imported instead, often from more polluting operations abroad.”
A senior Ineos executive, head of sustainability for the company's Olefins & Polymers division, said the Grangemouth money would be used to enhance energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and boost plant performance.
He explained 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 in the past obtained substantial tax breaks from the EU, worth hundreds of millions of euros—notably while Ratcliffe was a prominent backer of the campaign for the UK to leave the EU.
