Jim Ratcliffe Biography
Jim Ratcliffe (born Sir James Arthur Ratcliffe) FIChemE is an eminent British billionaire, chemical engineer, and businessman. He is the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of the INEOS chemicals group which he founded in 1998. In 2021, the company is estimated to have had a turnover of $65 billion. Jim does not have a high public profile and was once described by The Sunday Times as “public shy”. In May 2018, he was the richest person in the UK, with a net worth of £21.05 billion.
As of April 2020, Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimated his net worth at $28.2 billion, thus ranking him the 55th richest in the world and second in the UK. Officially, in September 2020, he changed his tax residence from Hampshire to Monaco, a move that is estimated will save him £4 billion in tax.
Jim Ratcliffe Age
He is 70 years old as of March 2023, having been born on October 18, 1952, in Failsworth, Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. Jim Ratcliffe shares his birthdate with celebrities such as; Zac Efron, FaZe Banks, Tyler Posey, BadKid Bam, Noah Atwood, and many more.
Jim Ratcliffe Family
News on the internet shows that his father started as a joiner whereas his mother was an accounts office worker. However, his parents’ names are not mentioned on the internet.
Jim Ratcliffe Siblings
He has a younger brother by the name of Bob Ratcliffe.
Jim Ratcliffe Education
He received his high school education at Beverley Grammar School. After high school, he attended the University of Birmingham. Later, he attended London Business School where he broadened his skills in finance by studying management accounting, taking an MSc in finance from 1978 to 1980.
Jim Ratcliffe’s Marital Status
He is married to the love of his life Alicia Ratcliffe. However, she was previously married to Amanda Towson, they were married from 1985 until 1995.
Jim Ratcliffe Kids
She has three kids. One kid from a previous relationship with Maria Alessia Maresca, a daughter. And has two kids with his ex-wife Amanda Towson, and two sons. However, his kids’ names and whereabouts are not mentioned on the internet.
Jim Ratcliffe Career
His first job was with oil giant Esso, but he decided to broaden his skills into finance. In 1989, he joined US private equity group Advent International.
A Career at INEOS
He was a co-founder of Inspec, which leased the former BP Chemicals site in Antwerp, Belgium. He then formed INEOS in 1998 in Hampshire to buy out Inspec and the freehold of the Antwerp site. From this small base, using high-yield debt to finance deals, he started buying unwanted operations from groups such as ICI and BP. As he selected targets based on their potential to double their earnings over five years. INEOS bought BP’s refining and petrochemical arm Innovene in 2006.
This thus gave INEOS refineries and plants in Scotland, Italy, Germany, France, Belgium, and Canada. In April 2010, he moved INEOS’s head office from Hampshire to Rolle, Switzerland. Thus decreasing the amount of tax the company paid by £100m a year. He then opened the UK headquarters of the chemicals and energy Knightsbridge, London in 2015, along with gas and oil trading and other functions. He was named the richest man in the UK in the Sunday Times Rich List 2018, with a net worth of £21.05 billion.
It was announced in February 2019, that INEOS would invest £1bn in the UK oil and chemical industries. To include an overhaul of the Forties pipeline system that is responsible for transporting a significant percentage of the UK’s North Sea oil and gas. Jim criticized the current government rules on May 1, 2019, that say fracking in Britain must be suspended every time a 0.5 magnitude is detected. Which has led to a de facto ban on track.
A Career in Sports Ownership and Sponsorship
He became the owner of FC Lausanne-Sport on November 13, 2017. This is a Swiss Super League football club. He then partnered with Ben Ainslie in 2018 to form INEOS Team UK to compete in the 36th America’s Cup in 2021. With Jim reportedly invested over £110 million in the project. On March 19, 2019, he purchased the Team Sky cycling franchise and subsequently rebranded Team INEOS.
On August 22, 2019, the French competition authority permitted the €100 million takeover of Ligue 1 club OGC Nice from Chinese-American entrepreneur Chien Lee INEOS. He then supported the October 2019 INEOS 1:59 Challenge, a successful effort by Eliud Kipchoge to run the classic marathon distance (42.195 kilometers or 26 miles 385 yards) under 2 hours.
Sports Ownership Continuation
INEOS became principal partners of Mercedes AMG F1 in February 2020, signing a five-year agreement with the team. He thus rejected claims that he would buy a Premiere League club, previously having been linked to Chelsea. However, in April 2022, he reversed direction making a bid of £4.25 billion for the club after Roman Abramovich put it up for sale. Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, sanctions on Roman Abramovich long-term owner of Premier League side Chelsea F.C. forced him to put the club up for sale. Thus Jim made a £4.25 billion nid to the club but this was rejected.
Despite the rejection, he remained hopeful of a takeover. Eventually, Chelsea FC was sold to US businessman Todd Boehly. In August 2022, he expressed interest in buying the Premiere League football team Manchester United. He was rumored to invest in West Ham United in October 2022. INESO announced in January 2023 publicly that it had entered into the formal process of bidding for Manchester United. This was after the current owners announced it was looking for new investors.
A Career in Energy Transition
He announced in October 2021 plans to invest more than €2bn (£1.7bn) into electrolysis projects to make zero-carbon hydrogen across Europe. He said the first units will produce clean hydrogen through the electrolysis of water in Norway, powered by renewable electricity, and will serve as a hub to