🔗 Share this article Chemical Companies Controlled by Tycoon Sir Jim Ratcliffe Obtained As Much As £70m in UK State Aid Over the Last Four-Year Period Before the recent £50m state rescue package for its Grangemouth facility, industrial firms under the ownership of billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe were already awarded up to £70m in British government support during the previous four-year period. Latest Revelations and Bailout Package Based on official data published this week, state aid to the Ineos group in the most recent year was between £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the conglomerate has received between £28m and £70m. The government stepped in this week to grant Ineos with £50m to support its Grangemouth operations, concerned that without it the UK would lose its last remaining facility producing ethylene—a vital raw material for plastics. Officials additionally supported a £75m credit guarantee, while Ineos pledged to invest £30m of its private capital. Refinery Shutdown and Wider Challenges This intervention arrives after Ineos shut down the adjacent oil refinery in September 2024, resulting in the loss of 400 jobs—a move described as a huge blow to the area and a political problem for the government. The billionaire, with an estimated net worth of $14.5bn, reportedly requested government assistance in October. This appeal comes at a time when the wide-ranging Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has faced significant financial pressure, in part due to soaring energy costs in the wake of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. In a sign of increasing concern over its financial health, Fitch Ratings downgraded Ineos's credit rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest substantial resources into his off-road vehicle venture and the turnaround of Manchester United, in which he holds a minority stake. Form of Support and Official Responses Most the previous state aid was delivered in the form of tax breaks 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 were given as estimates rather than exact amounts. An Ineos spokesperson said the aid did not represent “special treatment” for the company, but was “granted based on strict criteria, and open to any UK business that qualifies.” Although Ratcliffe thanked the government for the £50m support in an announcement, Ineos separately issued more critical comments. In these, the industrialist launched a broadside against government policy, specifically carbon taxes paid by 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 unsustainable pace.” Speaking elsewhere, Ratcliffe labelled carbon taxes as “the most idiotic tax in the world,” contending they place UK plants at a disadvantage against international competitors. Currently, most chemicals and plastics are not covered from the UK's initial carbon border adjustment mechanism. Investment and Sustainability Claims The Ineos representative 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. Should we fail to manufacture these critical products 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 new funding would be used to enhance energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, and boost plant performance. He noted the site, which uses an processing unit 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. Records show that Ineos has in the past obtained substantial tax breaks from the EU, valued at hundreds of millions of euros—notably while Ratcliffe was a prominent backer of the campaign for the UK to exit the European Union.