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Before this week's £50m government bailout for its Grangemouth facility, industrial firms under the ownership of billionaire Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted up to £70m in UK state aid during the previous four-year period.

Latest Revelations and Bailout Package

Based on official data published this week, public funding to the Ineos group in the most recent year ranged from £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the conglomerate has received a total of £28m and £70m.

The government stepped in on Tuesday to provide Ineos with £50m to support its Scottish ethylene plant, fearing that otherwise 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 arrives after Ineos closed the adjacent oil refinery in September 2024, costing 400 jobs—a move described as a huge blow 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 comes at a time when the wide-ranging Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has faced considerable economic strain, partly due to soaring energy costs following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Reflecting increasing concern over its financial health, the credit rating agency downgraded Ineos's debt rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest substantial resources into his off-road vehicle venture and efforts to revitalise Manchester United, in which he holds a minority stake.

Form of Support and Official Responses

Most the previous state aid came in the form of tax relief in exchange for “voluntary agreements to reduce energy use and CO2 output.” The value of these relief schemes for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull were given as estimates rather than precise figures.

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

Although Ratcliffe thanked the government for the £50m support in an official statement, Ineos separately issued sharper remarks. In these, the industrialist launched a broadside against government policy, including carbon taxes paid by industrial users.

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

Speaking elsewhere, Ratcliffe described carbon taxes as “an extremely foolish levy in the world,” arguing they place UK plants at a competitive disadvantage against foreign rivals. It is noted that most chemicals and plastics are excluded from the UK's planned carbon import tax.

Future Sustainability Claims

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 safeguard skilled jobs. The UK chemicals sector has had a very difficult year, yet society depends 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, indicated the Grangemouth money would be used to enhance energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, and boost overall 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 rocketing energy costs and the UK's carbon taxes.

Records show that Ineos has previously received 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.