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Prior to the recent £50m government bailout for its Scottish plant, chemical companies controlled by billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted as much as £70m in British government support over the past four years.

Latest Revelations and Financial Support

According to government disclosures released recently, public funding to the Ineos group in the last year alone was between £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the conglomerate has received a total of £28m and £70m.

Authorities intervened this week to provide Ineos with £50m to support its Scottish ethylene plant, concerned that otherwise the UK would lose its sole facility producing ethylene—a critical feedstock for plastics. The government also backed a £75m credit guarantee, while Ineos committed to invest £30m of its own funds.

Plant Closure and Broader Context

This support arrives after Ineos shut down the neighbouring oil refinery in late 2024, resulting in the loss of 400 jobs—a move described as a significant setback to the area and a challenge for the government.

Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, is understood to have requested government help in October. The request coincides with the expansive Ineos group, under the control of the 73-year-old, has faced significant financial pressure, partly due to sharply increased energy costs in the wake of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

In a sign of growing unease over its ability to manage debt, Fitch Ratings downgraded Ineos's debt 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.

Nature of Aid and Company Statements

The majority of the earlier government support came in the form of tax breaks in exchange for “commitments to reduce energy use and carbon dioxide emissions.” Figures for these relief schemes for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than precise figures.

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.”

While Ratcliffe publicly welcomed the £50m support in an announcement, Ineos also released sharper remarks. In these, the industrialist strongly criticised government policy, specifically 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 unsustainable pace.”

In further comments, Ratcliffe labelled carbon taxes as “an extremely foolish levy in the world,” contending they place UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against foreign rivals. Currently, most chemicals and plastics are excluded from the UK's planned carbon import tax.

Investment and 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 productive 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 critical products in the UK, they are brought in from overseas, often from more polluting operations abroad.”

Colin Pritchard, head of sustainability for the company's chemicals unit, said the new funding would be used to enhance energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and boost plant performance.

He noted the site, which uses an processing unit running on North Sea gas and US-sourced liquefied petroleum gas, had been under “intense strain” 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—interestingly while Ratcliffe was a prominent backer of the campaign for the UK to exit the European Union.