Revenue falls 38% at Ineos

ACCOUNTS filed by the chemicals giant Ineos reveal the impact the downturn has had on its income.

In the year to December 31 sales slumped 38% to £14.8bn, while losses widened 7.5% to £508m.

Ineos, Britain’s largest privately-owned company, has been hit by lower demand, stiff competition, higher raw material prices and rising interest charges.

In a bid to manage costs it sold its Runcorn-based Ineos Fluor business, which employs 280 people, to Mexico-based Mexichem for £289m in March, and struck a deal with its lenders over its massive £6.3bn debt pile the following month.

It has also decided to relocate to Switzerland in a bid to save £100m a year in tax.

The Hampshire-based group, founded by Mancunian Jim Ratcliffe, has grown rapidly since 1998 through numerous debt-funded acquisitions of assets held by the likes of ICI and BP.

Ineos still operates its Ineos Chlor business in Runcorn, which employs some 1,000.