Revealed: how a UK firm is spearheading growth in trade of US fracked ethane
A British petrochemical giant is spearheading a rapidly growing trade in US fracked ethane, a key ingredient for plastics, despite the fuel's ban across much of Europe.
Lois Bower-Bjornson has watched her children suffer severe health issues, from rashes to nosebleeds and anaemia, since a cluster of 36 fracking wells was established just 300 metres from her home in Washington County, Pennsylvania.
She blames the pollution from these wells for her children's ailments and also holds the British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe, owner of the petrochemical giant Ineos, partially responsible.
New analysis has exposed Ineos as the primary driver behind a booming trade in US fracked ethane, a gas used to make plastics that are then shipped to Europe.
Growing trade in fracked ethane
Fracking involves injecting chemical-laden liquid into the earth to access oil and gas, a practice banned in much of Europe due to its environmental and seismic risks.
Despite the ban, European countries can still import the gas, and Ineos has capitalized on this to secure a steady supply for its petrochemical plants.
Since completing a $2bn network of vessels in 2016, the volume of ethane shipped by or for Ineos has grown by a factor of 7.3, rising from 429 kilotonnes to 3,130 kilotonnes in 2025.
‘For the first time, new data reveals the true extent of Ineos’s ethane supply chain. The petrochemical giant has operated a growing and polluting ethane trade.’
Data from the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) shows that Ineos is responsible for at least two-thirds of all ethane exports from the United States.
Between March 2016 and November 2025, CIEL identified 790 shipments of US-sourced ethane on Ineos-branded vessels, with the majority destined for the company's facilities in Norway and Scotland.
Project One and the legal battle
Ineos is now developing Project One, a massive petrochemical plant in Antwerp, Belgium, which it intends to run on fracked ethane from the United States.
The project, which will be Europe's largest plastic factory, has received a €700m bank guarantee from the British government to facilitate its financing.
Environmental groups, including ClientEarth, are challenging the project in court, arguing that Ineos's environmental impact assessment fails to account for 'scope 3 emissions'.
These are emissions that occur elsewhere in the supply chain, such as the methane leaks and pollution from fracking operations in Pennsylvania.
‘Ineos has not accounted for the fracked gas that [Project One] will depend on, painting a downright inaccurate picture of the climate damage it would cause.’
A spokesperson for Ineos defended the company's environmental assessment, stating it has been updated and subjected to regulatory scrutiny.
The legal dispute over whether upstream emissions must be included in environmental impact assessments has been escalated to the EU's highest court.
Health concerns and government backing
Bower-Bjornson travelled to Antwerp last year to warn local politicians about the potential health impacts of the plant on her community in Pennsylvania.
Research indicates that children living within one mile of a fracking well have a five to seven times higher risk of developing lymphoma compared to those in areas with no wells nearby.
Ineos has stated that Project One will require approximately two million tonnes of ethane annually, which it claims is just 3% of US production.
However, the British government's backing of the project is under scrutiny, with critics pointing out a contradiction between its support for the project and its commitment to ending overseas fossil fuel finance.
‘The financial guarantee has helped enable a vast, fossil fuel-fed project that would produce the ingredients for plastics on a huge scale. It’s people that will pay the price for this project.’
CIEL is calling on EU policymakers to mandate independent lifecycle emissions reporting for imported petrochemical raw materials like ethane.
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