Industrial Companies Owned by Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe Obtained As Much As £70m in UK State Aid In the Past Four Years
Before this week's £50m state rescue package for its Grangemouth facility, chemical companies under the ownership of billionaire Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted as much as £70m in British government support over the past four years.
Latest Revelations and Financial Support
Based on official data released recently, state aid to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the most recent year ranged from £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the conglomerate has received between £28m and £70m.
The government stepped in on Tuesday to grant Ineos with £50m to prop up its Grangemouth operations, fearing 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 pledged to invest £30m of its private capital.
Refinery Shutdown and Wider Challenges
This support comes following Ineos shut down the adjacent oil refinery in late 2024, costing 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, is understood to have asked for government help in October. The request comes at a time when the expansive Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has been under significant financial pressure, in part due to soaring energy costs following Russia's 2022 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 significant funds 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 was delivered in the form of tax breaks in exchange for “voluntary agreements to reduce energy use and carbon dioxide emissions.” The value of these relief schemes for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull were given as estimates rather than exact amounts.
An Ineos spokesperson said the aid did not constitute “favourable terms” for the company, but was “granted based on strict criteria, and available to any UK business that qualifies.”
While Ratcliffe publicly welcomed the £50m support in an announcement, Ineos also released sharper remarks. In these, the industrialist strongly criticised government policy, including 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 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,” arguing they place UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against international competitors. It is noted that most chemicals and plastics are not covered from the UK's planned 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 efficient chemical plants in Europe and to protect skilled jobs. The UK chemicals sector has had a very difficult year, yet society depends on this industry every day. If we don't produce these essential materials in the UK, they are brought in from overseas, 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, cut carbon emissions, and upgrade overall performance.
He noted the site, which uses an processing unit utilising North Sea gas and imported liquefied petroleum gas, had been under “intense strain” from rocketing 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 prominent backer of the campaign for the UK to exit the European Union.
