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Before the recent £50m government bailout for its Grangemouth facility, chemical companies under the ownership of billionaire Jim Ratcliffe were already awarded up to £70m in British government support during the previous four-year period.

Latest Revelations and Bailout Package

Based on official data released recently, public funding to Ratcliffe's chemical empire in the most recent year ranged from £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the company has obtained between £28m and £70m.

The government stepped in on Tuesday to grant Ineos with £50m to prop up its Scottish ethylene plant, fearing that without it the UK would lose its sole facility manufacturing ethylene—a vital raw material for plastics. Officials additionally supported a £75m loan guarantee, while Ineos committed to invest £30m of its private capital.

Refinery Shutdown and Broader Context

This intervention comes after Ineos closed the neighbouring oil refinery in late 2024, resulting in the loss of 400 jobs—a move described as a significant setback to the local community and a political problem for the government.

Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, reportedly requested government help 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, in part due to soaring energy costs following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

In a sign of increasing concern over its ability to manage debt, the credit rating agency 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.

Form of Support and Official Responses

The majority of the previous state aid came in the form of tax breaks in exchange for “voluntary agreements to reduce energy use and CO2 output.” The value of these relief schemes for Ineos's plants in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than precise figures.

An Ineos spokesperson said the aid did not represent “favourable terms” for the company, but was “awarded against strict criteria, and open to any UK business that meets the requirements.”

Although Ratcliffe thanked the government for the £50m support in an official statement, Ineos separately issued sharper remarks. In these, the billionaire launched a broadside against 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. High energy costs and punitive carbon charges are pushing industry out of the UK at an alarming rate.”

Speaking elsewhere, 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 planned carbon border adjustment mechanism.

Investment and Sustainability Claims

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 efficient chemical plants in Europe and to safeguard skilled jobs. The UK chemicals sector 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 imported instead, often from higher-carbon production abroad.”

A senior Ineos executive, head of sustainability for the company's Olefins & Polymers division, said the Grangemouth money would be used to enhance energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and upgrade plant performance.

He explained the site, which uses an ethylene cracker 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.

Records show that Ineos has in the past obtained 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 leave the EU.