News of Ineos’s move into shale gas extraction comes amid nationwide protests against companies involved in fracking
Ineos, the company at the centre of last year’s bitter dispute with unions at its Grangemouth petrochemical plant, has bought the rights to explore fracking for shale gas in a 127 square mile area around Grangemouth and the Firth of Forth.
The company, which is controlled by publicity-shy Switzerland-based multimillionaire Jim Ratcliffe, said on Monday it had bought 51% of the rights to fracking licence PEDL 133, which covers the Midland Valley of Scotland.