Industrial Companies Controlled by Billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe Obtained Up to £70m in UK Government Support In the Past Four Years
Prior to this week's £50m government bailout for its Scottish plant, industrial firms controlled by billionaire Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted as much as £70m in UK state aid over the past four years.
Recent Revelations and Financial Support
Based on official data released this week, public funding to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the last year alone ranged from £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the conglomerate has received between £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 sole facility manufacturing ethylene—a critical raw material for plastics. Officials additionally supported a £75m loan guarantee, while Ineos committed to invest £30m of its private capital.
Plant Closure and Broader Context
This intervention arrives following Ineos closed 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 challenge for the government.
Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, reportedly requested government help in October. This appeal comes at a time when the expansive Ineos group, under the control of the 73-year-old, has been under considerable economic strain, partly due to sharply increased energy costs in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Reflecting increasing concern over its ability to manage debt, Fitch Ratings downgraded Ineos's credit rating in September. Ratcliffe has also had to commit substantial resources into his off-road vehicle venture and the turnaround of the football club, in which he holds a partial ownership.
Nature of Aid and Official Responses
Most the previous state aid came in the form of tax breaks in return 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 exact amounts.
An Ineos representative said the aid did not constitute “favourable terms” for the company, but was “awarded against strict criteria, and open to any UK business that qualifies.”
Although 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, specifically carbon taxes paid by industrial users.
“The solution is not decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” he stated. “Without a strong manufacturing base, the economy will continue to decline. Soaring power prices and burdensome carbon levies are driving industry out of the UK at an unsustainable pace.”
In further comments, Ratcliffe labelled carbon taxes as “the most idiotic tax in the world,” contending they put UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against foreign rivals. Currently, most chemicals and plastics are not covered from the UK's initial carbon import tax.
Investment and Sustainability Claims
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. The UK chemicals sector has had a brutal year, yet society depends 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 improve energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and upgrade plant performance.
He noted 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.
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 leading supporter of the campaign for the UK to leave the EU.
