Brussels’ approach to cutting emissions is wrong, says Ineos founder.

Europe’s green taxes are driving away investment and risk destroying its €1 trillion (£860bn) chemicals industry, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has warned.

In an open letter to Ursula von der Leyen, Sir Jim, the chairman and founder of Ineos, said Europe was “sleepwalking towards offshoring its industry, jobs, investments, and emissions”.

Sir Jim said the four key global regions for chemical manufacture were the US, Middle East, China and Europe. But soaring energy prices and net zero policies aimed at cutting emissions meant the Continent was “struggling” while the others flourished. The Telegraph has the story.

In a separate speech at the European Industry Summit on Tuesday, Sir Jim said: “The cost of gas in Europe is five times more expensive than in America. And electricity is still four times the price in Europe as in America. We in the chemicals world have to pay for that.

“Carbon taxes, … are a burden that manufacturers in Europe have to carry, but they don’t apply to imports. If you look at Ineos today, we’re paying about €150m, but by 2030 that would rise to €2bn. That’s just not sustainable.”

Sir Jim also warned that it had become almost impossible to get planning permission for new chemical plants.

He said: “Modern chemical technology is much much cleaner … Europe is still very large in chemicals – but the whole footprint [plants] are 30-50 years old. It’s impossible to renew them because the permitting legislation in Europe is so difficult.”

Brussels launched the first phase of its carbon border tax in October in an effort to protect European industries from cheap foreign imports. It will mean imports of carbon intensive goods such as steel and cement will be subject to a levy from 2026.

Economists speaking in front of the Lords Economic Affairs Committee on Tuesday warned that the cost of net zero will be far greater than the public is made to believe.

Olivier Blanchard, the former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund, said: “The public does not believe or has not been made to understand that is going to be costly for them. It is going to be costly and that message has to be sent out.”

Sir Dieter Helm, an economics professor at Oxford University and former adviser to Boris Johnson, said it was “delusory to think” that the net zero transition would pay for itself.

He added: “It’s much, much more expensive than people imagine.”

Sir Jim said that Europe’s approach to cutting emissions, by punishing companies with carbon taxes, was the wrong approach.

Read the full story here.