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Before this week's £50m state rescue package for its Scottish plant, chemical companies under the ownership of billionaire Jim Ratcliffe had already been granted up to £70m in UK state aid during the previous four-year period.

Recent Disclosures and Financial Support

Based on official data released recently, state aid to the Ineos group in the last year alone was between £16m and £38m. From August 2022 onwards, the conglomerate has received between £28m and £70m.

Authorities intervened this week 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 manufacturing ethylene—a vital raw material for plastics. The government also backed a £75m loan guarantee, while Ineos committed to invest £30m of its private capital.

Refinery Shutdown and Wider Challenges

This support comes following Ineos shut down the neighbouring oil refinery in late 2024, costing 400 jobs—a move described as a huge blow to the area and a political problem for the government.

Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, is understood to have requested government help in October. This appeal comes at a time when the expansive Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has been under considerable economic strain, in part due to sharply increased energy costs following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Reflecting growing unease over its financial health, the credit rating agency lowered Ineos's debt rating in September. Ratcliffe has also been required to invest substantial resources into his Ineos Grenadier automotive project and efforts to revitalise the football club, in which he holds a minority stake.

Form of Support and Company Statements

The majority of the previous state aid came in the form of tax breaks in return for “commitments to reduce energy use and carbon dioxide emissions.” The value of these tax breaks for Ineos's plants in Grangemouth and Hull are reported as ranges rather than precise figures.

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.”

Although Ratcliffe publicly welcomed the £50m support in an announcement, Ineos separately issued more critical comments. In these, the industrialist strongly criticised government policy, specifically carbon taxes levied on industrial users.

“The answer is NOT decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” Ratcliffe wrote. “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.”

In further comments, Ratcliffe described carbon taxes as “the most idiotic tax in the world,” arguing 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 border adjustment mechanism.

Investment and 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. British industry has had a brutal year, yet society depends on this industry every day. If we don't produce these critical products in the UK, they are imported instead, often from higher-carbon production abroad.”

Colin Pritchard, head of sustainability for the company's chemicals unit, said the Grangemouth money would be used to improve energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and boost plant 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 surging 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.