Commenting on the publication of the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme, Anthony Ainsworth, Chief Operating Officer at npower Business Solutions, said:
“With heightened energy volatility, and steep increases to network, policy and system costs hitting energy invoices this year, businesses have been eagerly awaiting the final publication of the government’s British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS).
“The key headlines are the expansion of BICS eligibility from up to 7,000 qualifying manufacturers to over 10,000, and the commitment of a reduction in the Renewables Obligation and Feed in Tariff from April 2027 and Capacity Market from October 2027. There is also the additional commitment of a one-off payment next year, funded by the Exchequer, which will effectively backdate the scheme to April 2026.
“This additional support is welcome news for those now in the eligible sectors and the expansion signals a genuine ambition to broaden the scheme’s reach. We’ll continue to work with the government to build on this momentum further and will continue to bring forward ideas such as an even broader sliding scale of eligibility or further sector reviews. This would mean that the benefits extend beyond the c.4% of businesses that currently qualify and reflect the breadth of need our Business Energy Tracker has consistently highlighted.
“Energy costs are rising across the board and businesses are ready to invest and grow – they just need the conditions to do it. The April 2027 implementation date is a firm foundation and we’ll work with all partners to support ambitions to examine how the scheme can be accelerated, expanded and made more responsive to businesses navigating real cost pressures today. The direction of travel is right but we must all keep pushing to reach even more businesses, more quickly.”
