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Britain’s largest chemical plant will remain open after owner INEOS Secured a major government aid package in an agreement that will protect around 500 jobs.
will see the deal UK government Provide over £120 million to help keep Ineos’s Olefins & Polymer (O&P) plant running grangemouth Operations began after the site’s future became uncertain earlier this year
sir prime minister keir starmer He said the move is an investment in “good jobs, strong communities and a modern economy.”
Meanwhile, Ineos boss and founder Sir jim ratcliffe Said the funding was “welcome” and would help support UK manufacturing.
The billionaire has previously been critical of the Labor government’s energy policies and investment climate in Britain.
The government and Ineos will together invest approximately £150 million in the petrochemicals site, which the UK has deemed “strategically important” to its national infrastructure.
Ineos agreed on assurances that the funding would only be used to improve the site and that the government would be allowed to share in future profits.
The chemicals giant said it has spent more than £100 million maintaining operations at the site in the last year.
However, this comes after Ineos closed its ethanol manufacturing site and oil refinery in Grangemouth earlier this year, which it linked to higher costs.
The Prime Minister said: “When we said we would protect jobs and invest in Britain’s future, we meant it – and this is the proof.
“Through partnership, determination and our modern industrial strategy, we are delivering new opportunities, new investment and security for the next generation of workers in Scotland.”
Business Secretary Peter Kyle said: “The UK Government’s decision to take action will protect Grangemouth as a site of strategic national importance and safeguard 500 vital jobs in the area.
“By partnering with Ineos we are supporting the plant and its long-term future, giving workers and the supply chain certainty moving forward.”
Sir Jim said: “Through the partnership, Ineos and the UK Government have demonstrated their commitment to operating the site and maintaining jobs.
“The agreement includes safeguards to protect taxpayers’ money, such as strict assurances that funding can only be used to improve the site, and also gives the UK Government the right to share in future profits.”
Gillian Martin, the Scottish Government’s Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Energy, said: “This is a very welcome announcement.
“The Scottish Government has for many months been calling on the UK Government to intervene to protect jobs in Grangemouth and Mossmoran on the scale seen in other parts of the UK. This news will provide a much-needed boost to the Grangemouth community and Ineos O&P workers.
“The Scottish Government’s announcement last week of an £8.5 million investment in the Grangemouth industrial cluster, including MiAlgae and Celtic Renewables, which will create 460 jobs, shows that a long-term industrial future at the site is achievable. We will continue to do everything we can, within our limited powers, to achieve this.”