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Before this week's £50m government bailout for its Grangemouth facility, industrial firms under the ownership of tycoon Sir Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted up to £70m in UK state aid over the past four years.

Recent Revelations and Financial Support

According to government disclosures released recently, state aid to the Ineos group in the most recent year ranged from £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the company has received between £28m and £70m.

Authorities intervened this week to grant Ineos with £50m to prop up its Scottish ethylene plant, concerned that without it the UK would cease to have its sole facility producing ethylene—a vital feedstock for plastics. The government also backed a £75m credit guarantee, while Ineos pledged to invest £30m of its private capital.

Refinery Shutdown and Wider Challenges

This intervention comes following Ineos closed 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 challenge for the government.

Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, reportedly asked for government assistance in October. This appeal comes at a time when the expansive Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has been under considerable economic strain, in part due to sharply increased energy costs in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Reflecting growing unease over its ability to manage debt, Fitch Ratings lowered 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.

Form of Support and Company Statements

Most the earlier government support came in the form of tax breaks in return for “commitments 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 precise figures.

An Ineos representative stated the aid did not represent “favourable terms” for the company, but was “granted based on strict criteria, and available to any UK business that meets the requirements.”

While Ratcliffe thanked the government for the £50m support in an official statement, Ineos separately issued more critical comments. In these, the industrialist strongly criticised government policy, specifically carbon taxes levied on industrial users.

“The answer is NOT decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” he stated. “Without a strong manufacturing base, the economy will falter. High energy costs and punitive carbon charges are driving industry out of the UK at an alarming rate.”

Speaking elsewhere, Ratcliffe labelled carbon taxes as “the most idiotic tax in the world,” contending they place UK plants at a disadvantage against foreign rivals. It is noted that most chemicals and plastics are excluded from the UK's planned carbon border adjustment mechanism.

Investment and Environmental Pledges

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 protect skilled jobs. British industry has had a brutal 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.”

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

He explained the site, which uses an processing unit running on North Sea gas and imported liquefied petroleum gas, had been under “extreme pressure” from surging energy costs and the UK's carbon taxes.

Records show that Ineos has previously received substantial tax breaks from the EU, worth hundreds of millions of euros—notably while Ratcliffe was a prominent backer of the campaign for the UK to exit the European Union.