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Before the recent £50m state rescue package for its Scottish plant, chemical companies controlled by tycoon Sir Jim Ratcliffe were already awarded up to £70m in UK state aid during the previous four-year period.

Latest Disclosures and Bailout Package

According to government disclosures published this week, public funding to the Ineos group in the most recent year was between £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the conglomerate has obtained a total of £28m and £70m.

The government stepped in on Tuesday to provide Ineos with £50m to prop up its Grangemouth operations, fearing that without it the UK would lose its last remaining facility producing ethylene—a vital raw material for plastics. The government also backed a £75m credit guarantee, while Ineos pledged to invest £30m of its private capital.

Refinery Shutdown and Broader Context

This intervention comes following 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.

The billionaire, with an estimated net worth of $14.5bn, reportedly requested government assistance in October. The request comes at a time when the wide-ranging Ineos group, under the control of the 73-year-old, has faced considerable economic strain, partly due to soaring energy costs following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

In a sign of increasing concern over its ability to manage debt, Fitch Ratings lowered Ineos's debt 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 minority stake.

Nature of Aid and Official Responses

Most the earlier government support came in the form of tax relief in return for “voluntary agreements to curb consumption and CO2 output.” Figures for these tax breaks for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than exact amounts.

An Ineos representative said the aid did not constitute “special treatment” for the company, but was “awarded against strict criteria, and open to any UK business that meets the requirements.”

While Ratcliffe thanked the government for the £50m support in an announcement, Ineos separately issued more critical comments. In these, the billionaire 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 continue to decline. High energy costs and burdensome carbon levies are pushing industry out of the UK at an alarming rate.”

Speaking elsewhere, Ratcliffe described carbon taxes as “an extremely foolish levy in the world,” contending they place UK plants at a disadvantage against international competitors. Currently, most chemicals and plastics are not covered from the UK's initial carbon border adjustment mechanism.

Future Environmental Pledges

The Ineos spokesperson added: “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 everyone relies on this industry every day. If we don't produce these essential materials in the UK, they are imported instead, often from higher-carbon production abroad.”

Colin Pritchard, head of sustainability for the company's Olefins & Polymers division, said the Grangemouth money would be used to improve energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, and boost overall performance.

He noted the site, which uses an processing unit utilising North Sea gas and US-sourced 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 in the past obtained significant 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.