A consultation launched by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) could see as many as 7000 manufacturers saving up to a quarter on their electricity costs under the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS).
Open for comments until 19 January 2026, and applying to companies in England, Wales and Scotland, the consultation can be found HERE.
It explains that the BICS scheme aims to reduce electricity costs for manufacturing frontier industries within the Industrial Strategy’s growth sectors and manufacturing foundational industries which provide key inputs to the frontier industries, who meet a certain threshold of electricity intensity. Eligible businesses will be exempt from paying the indirect costs of the Renewables Obligation, Feed-in Tariffs and the Capacity Market.
The Government has decided to take action after recognising that British industrial electricity prices are currently some of the highest in the G7, making it harder for British firms to compete on the global stage. It noted that 64% of businesses in the latest business confidence survey from the Adam Smith Institute said high energy costs are a “major concern”.
The scheme is expected to support hundreds of thousands of skilled jobs across the country, reducing eligible companies’ bills by around £35 to £40 per megawatt hour. Business and trade secretary, Peter Kyle, said: “This is just the start, and in the months ahead I will be going further to address business concerns, reverse our industrial decline and make the UK the best place to start and scale a business.”
Department for Business and Trade
We are the department for economic growth. We support businesses to invest, grow and export, creating jobs and opportunities across the country.
