Ineos to mothball three chemical plants as high energy costs hit production

Sept 22 (Reuters) - Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos said on Tuesday it was suspending operations at three chemical plants in Hull, UK, blaming high European gas prices that have made production too expensive.

European manufacturers have struggled to compete with U.S. and Chinese rivals since the energy crisis triggered by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and compounded by the Middle East war, leaving energy-intensive industries with far higher fuel and power costs than competitors in the United States and China.

The three plants employ almost 4,000 people and makes chemicals used in medicines, clothing, cosmetics, detergents, building materials and explosives, the company said.

"The European regulators need to wake up to the fact that the combination of high energy costs and the additional burden of unsustainable carbon taxes are destroying our European manufacturing base," chairman Ratcliffe said in a statement.

"With gas prices now 12 times the level in the US and 8 times that of China, we just cannot compete," Ratcliffe added.

British gas prices on a front-month contract basis are currently trading at around $23.51 per million British thermal units (MMBtu), compared with $2.84/MMBtu for benchmark US gas at the Henry Hub, according to data from LSEG and the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE).

(Reporting by Atharva Singh in Benglauru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)