Industrial Companies Owned by Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe Received As Much As £70m in British State Aid In the Last Four-Year Period
Before this week's £50m government bailout for its Grangemouth facility, chemical companies controlled by billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted up to £70m in British government support over the past four years.
Recent Disclosures and Bailout Package
According to official data published this week, public funding to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the last year alone was between £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the company has received a total of £28m and £70m.
Authorities intervened this week to grant Ineos with £50m to support its Grangemouth operations, concerned that otherwise the UK would cease to have its last remaining facility producing ethylene—a vital raw material for plastics. The government also backed a £75m loan guarantee, while Ineos committed to invest £30m of its private capital.
Plant Closure and Broader Context
This support arrives following Ineos shut down the adjacent oil refinery in September 2024, costing 400 jobs—a move described as a huge blow to the area and a challenge for the government.
Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, is understood to have asked for government help 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, partly due to soaring energy costs following 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 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 Company Statements
The majority of the earlier government support came in the form of tax breaks in return for “voluntary agreements to curb consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.” Figures for these relief schemes for Ineos's plants in Grangemouth and Hull were given as estimates rather than exact amounts.
An Ineos spokesperson stated the aid did not constitute “special treatment” 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 separately issued sharper remarks. In these, the billionaire strongly criticised government policy, including carbon taxes levied on industrial users.
“The answer is NOT decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” he stated. “Lacking a robust manufacturing base, the economy will continue to decline. Soaring power prices and burdensome carbon levies are pushing industry out of the UK at an alarming rate.”
In further comments, Ratcliffe described carbon taxes as “an extremely foolish levy in the world,” arguing they place UK plants at a disadvantage against international competitors. It is noted that most chemicals and plastics are not covered from the UK's initial carbon import tax.
Investment and Environmental Pledges
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 protect skilled jobs. British industry 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 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, reduce carbon emissions, and boost overall performance.
He noted the site, which uses an ethylene cracker 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.
It has also been reported that Ineos has previously received substantial 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.
