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Before the recent £50m state rescue package for its Grangemouth facility, industrial firms controlled by tycoon Jim Ratcliffe were already awarded up to £70m in British government support over the past four years.

Latest Revelations and Bailout Package

According to government disclosures published this week, state aid to the Ineos group in the last year alone ranged from £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the conglomerate has obtained a total of £28m and £70m.

Authorities intervened on Tuesday to grant Ineos with £50m to prop up its Grangemouth operations, fearing that without it the UK would cease to have its last remaining facility producing ethylene—a vital feedstock for plastics. Officials additionally supported a £75m credit guarantee, while Ineos committed to invest £30m of its own funds.

Refinery Shutdown and Wider Challenges

This intervention arrives following Ineos shut down the neighbouring 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.

The billionaire, with an estimated net worth of $14.5bn, reportedly requested government assistance in October. This appeal coincides with the wide-ranging Ineos group, controlled by 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.

Reflecting growing unease over its financial health, Fitch Ratings lowered Ineos's debt rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest significant funds into his Ineos Grenadier automotive project 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 was delivered in the form of tax relief in return for “commitments to curb consumption and CO2 output.” Figures for these relief schemes for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull were given as estimates rather than exact amounts.

An Ineos representative said 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 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, including carbon taxes levied on industrial users.

“The solution is not decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” Ratcliffe wrote. “Lacking a robust manufacturing base, the economy will falter. High energy costs and punitive carbon charges are driving industry out of the UK at an unsustainable pace.”

In further comments, Ratcliffe described carbon taxes as “the most idiotic tax in the world,” contending they place UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against foreign rivals. It is noted that most chemicals and plastics are not covered from the UK's initial carbon import tax.

Future Sustainability Claims

The Ineos representative added: “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. British industry has had a brutal year, yet everyone relies on this industry every day. Should we fail to manufacture these critical products in the UK, they are brought in from overseas, often from higher-carbon production abroad.”

Colin Pritchard, head of sustainability for the company's chemicals unit, indicated the Grangemouth money would be used to improve energy efficiency, reduce 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 “extreme pressure” from surging energy costs and the UK's carbon taxes.

It has also been reported 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.