Petroineos, the energy trading company backed by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, has reported a loss of $250m (£187.5m) in 2024, marking its first return to the red since 2020.
The Jersey-based firm posted the pre-tax loss after achieving a profit of $30m in 2023, with the previous financial year's results only disclosed in May, as reported by .
Petroineos' 2024 accounts, recently lodged with Companies House, also show revenue declining from $38.8m to $28.3m.
The results follow the company's announcement regarding the closure of its Grangemouth refinery, Scotland's sole oil facility of its kind, after a century of operations.
In its latest financial statement, the business attributed its losses to "depressed refining margins, refinery availability and a challenging year for asset trading and entrepreneurial trading coupled with one-off provisions related to Grangemouth refinery transition."
The last occasion Petroineos recorded a pre-tax loss was in 2020, when it reported $383m in the red.
The China National Petroleum Corporation, owned by the Chinese government, holds a majority stake in Petroineos, whilst Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos controls the remaining shares.
Earlier this year, Petroineos made the decision to halt refining operations at Grangemouth, Scotland's only oil refinery, following a century of production.
The closure, anticipated to result in more than 400 job losses, will see the 1,700-acre site transformed into an import terminal for finished fuels.
Petroineos laments 'periods of price volatility'
A statement approved by the board read: "In 2024, the global oil market faced a delicate balance between supply and demand, as geopolitical tensions and economic factors influenced market dynamics.
"With global demand growth believed to have been approximately +830,000 b/d, the recovery was uneven.
"China's economic rebound was slower than expected, with oil demand hindered by the fast adoption of electric vehicles and the increased use of LNG [liquefied natural gas] in the heavy trucking sector.
"In contrast, oil production continued to rise with new production in key regions such as the USA, Brazil, Guyana and further increases in exports from sanctioned Iran."
Petroineos noted that this "led to periods of price volatility".
The company further stated: "In addition to the supply-demand imbalance, the oil market in 2024 was shaped by a series of geopolitical developments.
"The market had to deal with the new development of Ukrainian attacks on Russian refining infrastructure.
"The Red Sea was effectively closed for most tanker traffic which contributed to uncertainty in global supply chains.
"Furthermore, multiple elections, not just that of the USA, generated questions of whether energy policy could shift in the near future."
Sir Jim Ratcliffe issues industry warning
Petroineos was awarded £2.2m by the High Court over a claim that it brought against oil business Eninco in December 2024.
The claim was in relation to Eninco's failure to accept delivery and pay for fuel oil sales made by Petroineos to the company between 2023-24. Eninco has since gone into administration.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has previously cautioned that Europe's chemicals industry "faces extinction" and urged European Union leaders to abandon their carbon tax and raise tariffs to preserve it.
In an open letter published in February, the founder and owner of chemicals titan Ineos delivered a scathing critique of the EU's approach to the chemicals sector, which he described as being in crisis.
Earlier this month, Sir Jim Ratcliffe appealed to Europe's leaders to rescue the continent's chemicals industry or risk losing millions of jobs.
The founder and chairman of Ineos implored politicians to make an "eleventh-hour intervention" at what he has termed a "moment of reckoning" for the industry.
He further stated that the industry is at a critical juncture and can now only be salvaged through immediate action.
The billionaire, who is the seventh wealthiest individual in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ with a fortune of £17bn, called on politicians to abolish the carbon tax which he said the industry "simply cannot afford".
He also advocated for the elimination of the green tax and levies from energy costs in Europe to make the market competitive and for tariff protection.
In addition to reducing taxes and levies on industrial energy, the founder of Ineos is urging leaders to offer targeted relief and "well-designed carbon border measures to protect Europe's market share from competitors using subsidies or low-regulated energy".
He is also advocating for the reinstatement of free allocations and a decrease in carbon pricing, to 'provide immediate relief and buy time for investment into decarbonisation technologies'.
