Grangemouth closure a ‘shining example of how not to do anything’, MPs told

The forthcoming closure of the Grangemouth oil refinery is a “shining example of how not to do anything”, MPs were told as the boss of plant owners Ineos came under fire.

Just Transition Commissioner Richard Hardy levelled thinly veiled criticism at Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the chairman and chief executive of Ineos – who also owns part of Manchester United Football Club.

Following reports last year that Ineos had continued to receive public cash despite announcing plans to close the Grangemouth refinery, Mr Hardy told MPs on the Scottish Affairs Committee there needs to be better “conditionality around the provision of public funds”.

He insisted: “There needs to be, in our view, conditionality around the provision of public funds to people, particularly very rich people living in tax havens who own football teams who take public money and then spend that public money on divesting jobs in communities that are very precarious.”

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In September last year, bosses at Petroineos – a joint venture between Petro China and Ineos – confirmed the Grangemouth refinery will close in the second quarter of 2025, with the loss of some 400 jobs.

With the Just Transition Commission set up to help communities and workers as the UK switches away from fossil fuels towards greener alternatives, Mr Hardy said they had “done a lot of work on Grangemouth”.

He described the situation there as “a shining example of how not to do anything”, adding: “The key lesson from how we do change in the future is not to do it like it has been done at Grangemouth.

“I think it is fair to reflect that lots of promises have been made by various people in various different roles, none of which seem to have come about.”

Mr Hardy made clear the Just Transition Commission believes “high carbon organisations” should develop exit plans for the phasing out of fuels such as oil and gas.

Referring to the closure of Longannet – which was Scotland’s last coal-fired power station – in 2016, he said there had been a “much more controlled process”.

He told MPs: “ScottishPower had a long-term plan and when Longannet closed, of the 350 people who worked at Longannet, everybody that wanted to remain economically active remained economically active.”

He said that was because the company had had a “five to eight-year closure programme” in place, though he added this had been “accelerated as a result of technical issues at Longannet”.

Commenting on Grangemouth, Mr Hardy added: “I said it was a litmus test for just transition and it didn’t do particularly well I am afraid.”

He also stressed the importance of achieving a just transition away from fossil fuels, saying this should ensure people see the process as being something that is “done with them rather than being done to them”.

Looking back at the closure of many of the UK’s coal mines previously, he added: “I lived through the coal mining closures of the 1980s and 1990s in Yorkshire. That felt very much like it was done to us and it leaves a legacy of hurt.”

Ineos has been contacted for comment.