Industrial Firms Owned by Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe Obtained As Much As £70m in UK State Aid In the Last Four-Year Period
Before the recent £50m government bailout for its Scottish plant, chemical companies under the ownership of tycoon Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted up to £70m in British government support over the past four years.
Recent Revelations and Bailout Package
According to government disclosures released this week, state aid to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the last year alone was between £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the conglomerate 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, concerned that otherwise the UK would cease to have its last remaining facility manufacturing ethylene—a critical raw material for plastics. Officials additionally supported a £75m credit guarantee, while Ineos committed to invest £30m of its own funds.
Plant Closure and Broader Context
This intervention arrives after Ineos shut down 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, reportedly requested government help in October. This appeal coincides with the wide-ranging Ineos group, under the control of the 73-year-old, has been under significant financial pressure, partly due to soaring energy costs in the wake of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Reflecting growing unease over its ability to manage debt, the credit rating agency downgraded Ineos's debt rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest substantial resources into his off-road vehicle venture and efforts to revitalise the football club, in which he holds a minority stake.
Form of Support and Official Responses
The majority of the earlier government support was delivered in the form of tax relief in exchange for “commitments to curb consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.” The value of these relief schemes for Ineos's plants in Grangemouth and Hull were given as estimates rather than exact amounts.
An Ineos representative said the aid did not represent “favourable terms” for the company, but was “granted based on strict criteria, and available to any UK business that meets the requirements.”
While Ratcliffe publicly welcomed the £50m support in an official statement, Ineos separately issued sharper remarks. In these, the billionaire strongly criticised government policy, specifically carbon taxes levied on industrial users.
“The solution is not decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” Ratcliffe wrote. “Without a strong manufacturing base, the economy will falter. Soaring power prices and burdensome carbon levies are pushing industry out of the UK at an unsustainable pace.”
Speaking elsewhere, Ratcliffe described carbon taxes as “the most idiotic tax in the world,” arguing they place UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against foreign rivals. Currently, most chemicals and plastics are not covered from the UK's planned carbon import tax.
Future Sustainability Claims
The Ineos representative 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 protect skilled jobs. The UK chemicals sector 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 more polluting operations abroad.”
A senior Ineos executive, head of sustainability for the company's Olefins & Polymers division, indicated the new funding would be used to enhance energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, and boost overall 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 significant 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 leave the EU.