Industrial Firms Owned by Tycoon Sir Jim Ratcliffe Obtained Up to £70m in UK Government Support Over the Past Four Years
Prior to this week's £50m government bailout for its Scottish plant, chemical companies controlled by tycoon Sir 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 government disclosures published this week, state aid to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the most recent year was between £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the conglomerate has received a total of £28m and £70m.
The government stepped in on Tuesday to grant Ineos with £50m to prop up its Grangemouth operations, fearing that without it the UK would cease to have its sole 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 intervention arrives following 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 area and a political problem for the government.
The billionaire, with an estimated net worth of $14.5bn, is understood to have requested government help in October. The request comes at a time when the wide-ranging Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has faced considerable economic strain, in part due to soaring energy costs following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
In a sign of increasing concern over its financial health, the credit rating agency downgraded Ineos's credit rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest significant funds 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 previous state aid came in the form of tax relief in exchange for “voluntary agreements 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 available to any UK business that meets the requirements.”
While Ratcliffe thanked the government for the £50m support in an announcement, Ineos also released more critical comments. In these, the industrialist strongly criticised government policy, including carbon taxes paid by industrial users.
“The solution is not decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” Ratcliffe wrote. “Lacking a robust manufacturing base, the economy will continue to decline. 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 “the most idiotic tax in the world,” contending they place UK plants at a disadvantage against foreign rivals. It is noted that most chemicals and plastics are excluded from the UK's planned carbon border adjustment mechanism.
Future Sustainability Claims
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 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. Should we fail to manufacture these critical products in the UK, they are imported instead, often from more polluting operations abroad.”
Colin Pritchard, head of sustainability for the company's Olefins & Polymers division, indicated the new funding would be used to improve energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and upgrade overall performance.
He explained the site, which uses an ethylene cracker 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.
Records show that Ineos has previously received significant tax breaks from the EU, valued at hundreds of millions of euros—notably while Ratcliffe was a leading supporter of the campaign for the UK to exit the European Union.
