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Before this week's £50m state rescue package for its Scottish plant, industrial firms under the ownership of tycoon Sir Jim Ratcliffe were already awarded as much as £70m in British government support over the past four years.

Recent Disclosures and Financial Support

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

Authorities intervened this week to provide Ineos with £50m to support its Grangemouth operations, concerned that otherwise the UK would lose its sole facility manufacturing ethylene—a critical feedstock for plastics. Officials additionally supported a £75m loan guarantee, while Ineos pledged to invest £30m of its private capital.

Plant Closure and Broader Context

This support arrives after Ineos shut down the adjacent oil refinery in September 2024, costing 400 jobs—a move described as a significant setback to the local community and a challenge for the government.

Ratcliffe, who is worth $14.5bn, reportedly requested government assistance in October. The request coincides with the wide-ranging Ineos group, controlled by the 73-year-old, has been under considerable economic strain, in part due to soaring energy costs in the wake of Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Reflecting growing unease over its ability to manage debt, Fitch Ratings lowered Ineos's debt rating in September. Ratcliffe has also had to commit significant funds into his Ineos Grenadier automotive project and efforts to revitalise the football club, in which he holds a partial ownership.

Nature of Aid and Official Responses

Most the previous state aid was delivered in the form of tax breaks in return for “voluntary agreements to reduce energy use and CO2 output.” Figures for these relief schemes for Ineos's sites in Grangemouth and Hull were given as estimates 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 publicly welcomed the £50m support in an announcement, Ineos also released more critical comments. In these, the billionaire launched a broadside against government policy, including carbon taxes paid by industrial users.

“The solution is not decarbonisation by deindustrialisation,” he stated. “Without a strong manufacturing base, the economy will continue to decline. Soaring power prices and burdensome carbon levies are pushing industry out of the UK at an unsustainable pace.”

Speaking elsewhere, Ratcliffe labelled 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 excluded from the UK's initial carbon import tax.

Future Environmental Pledges

The Ineos spokesperson 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 very difficult 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.”

A senior Ineos executive, head of sustainability for the company's chemicals unit, said the Grangemouth money would be used to improve energy efficiency, cut carbon emissions, and upgrade overall performance.

He noted the site, which uses an ethylene cracker running on North Sea gas and US-sourced liquefied petroleum gas, had been under “intense strain” from surging energy costs and the UK's carbon taxes.

Records show that Ineos has in the past obtained significant tax breaks from the EU, worth hundreds of millions of euros—interestingly while Ratcliffe was a prominent backer of the campaign for the UK to leave the EU.