Press release
Judgment on Europe’s biggest plastic facility imminent after latest court hearing
24 April 2026
A ruling on what could become Europe’s biggest plastic production site in the Port of Antwerp is expected in the next two months, following yesterday’s hearing at the Flemish Council for Permit Disputes (Raad voor Vergunningsbetwistingen).
For the first time in years, the council heard two legal challenges against INEOS’ Project One – brought by a coalition of NGOs, including ClientEarth, Greenpeace Belgium and Bond Beter Leefmilieu (BBL).
ClientEarth lawyer Tatiana Luján said:
“Yesterday in court, we argued that Project One shouldn’t go ahead. We presented evidence showing that the facility threatens local communities through its projected health impacts and would further degrade surrounding nature that has already faced years of industrial pollution – to name only a few issues.
“We’re looking forward to the court’s decision. In particular, we hope it will clarify whether the whole impacts a project has on the environment and public health have to be taken into account in permit applications.”
Senior campaigner at Greenpeace Belgium Joeri Thijs said:
“Today’s geopolitics and the growing energy crisis once again show how absurd it is to invest in a polluting plastics factory powered by imported fossil gas.”
“With Flemish taxpayers' money, the Flemish government continues to facilitate the reckless plans of INEOS boss Jim Ratcliffe. In doing so, it is not only putting the climate and our living environment at risk, but also slowing down the transition to a future-proof industry in Flanders.”
Circular Economy policy expert Kira Van den Ende at Bond Beter Leefmilieu said:
“INEOS is receiving unprecedented preferential treatment, which is completely at odds with the principles of good governance.
“In addition to subsidies and state guarantees, the Flemish government also bent its permitting policy in countless ways to make Project One a reality. All for a project that in no way aligns with the chemical industry of the future. That future is fossil-free, circular, and focused on added value.”
ENDS
Notes to editors:
Background to the case
Since 2020, INEOS has applied for permit-after-permit to build its €4 billion Project One development, which would use fracked fossil gas to make the raw materials for plastic.
Despite one of the permits being overturned in 2023, INEOS has continued to plough ahead with permit requests. In each project application, lawyers argue that the company have repeatedly failed to address Project One’s full impact on health and the environment in Antwerp and the surrounding area.
And beyond the case itself, public health and our climate are buckling due to the oversupply of plastic. Almost a quarter of the chemical substances found in plastic haven been linked to diabetes, obesity, certain types of cancer and other illnesses – and plastic production is set to take up 20 percent of the world’s carbon budget by 2050.
The impending judgment will come off the back of recent, successful judgments in Europe that said the Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) in permit applications must account for the full emissions portfolio of a project – something that this case argues is glaringly absent from INEOS’ submissions.
About ClientEarth
ClientEarth works in over 60 countries across Africa, the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Europe. We shape, implement and enforce the law, to build a future for our planet in which people and nature can thrive.
We are tackling climate change, protecting nature and stopping pollution, with partners and citizens around the globe. We hold industry and governments to account and defend everyone’s right to a healthy world.