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Before the recent £50m state rescue package for its Scottish plant, industrial firms under the ownership of tycoon Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted up to £70m in UK state aid over the past four years.

Recent Disclosures and Financial Support

According to government disclosures published this week, state aid to the Ineos group in the most recent year ranged from £16m and £38m. Since August 2022, the company has received 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 sole facility producing ethylene—a critical feedstock for plastics. The government also backed 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 adjacent oil refinery in September 2024, resulting in the loss of 400 jobs—a move described as a significant setback to the area and a challenge for the government.

Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, reportedly asked for government help in October. This appeal comes at a time when the expansive Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has faced significant financial pressure, partly due to soaring energy costs following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Reflecting increasing concern over its financial health, Fitch Ratings lowered Ineos's debt rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest substantial resources into his Ineos Grenadier automotive project and the turnaround of the football club, in which he holds a partial ownership.

Nature of Aid and Company Statements

The majority of the previous state aid came in the form of tax breaks in exchange for “voluntary agreements to curb consumption and CO2 output.” Figures for these relief schemes for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than exact amounts.

An Ineos representative stated the aid did not represent “special treatment” for the company, but was “granted based on 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 also released sharper remarks. In these, the billionaire strongly criticised government policy, including 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 competitive disadvantage against international competitors. Currently, most chemicals and plastics are excluded from the UK's initial 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 maintain its status 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. 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 Grangemouth money would be used to enhance energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and upgrade plant performance.

He explained the site, which uses an processing unit running on 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 significant tax breaks from the EU, valued at hundreds of millions of euros—interestingly while Ratcliffe was a prominent backer of the campaign for the UK to exit the European Union.