From April 2027, thousands of UK manufacturers could benefit from the new British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) with potential savings worth around £35–£40 per MWh.
In addition, eligible businesses will also receive an additional payment reflecting the support they would have received had the scheme been in place from April 2026.
But BICS eligibility isn’t necessarily straightforward.
It depends on factors including:
- What your business manufactures
- Your SIC classification
- Whether the products you manufacture fall within the eligible categories
- How much of the electricity used at each site relates to eligible manufacturing
You don’t need to work all of that out yourself.
My Energy Consultants can carry out an initial eligibility assessment free of charge and without obligation.
If you appear eligible, we can then help with the evidence, application process and work with your electricity supplier to ensure the appropriate relief and back payment is applied.
The first BICS application window opens on 1st October and closes on 30th November 2026, so now is the time to establish whether your business could qualify.
Take our 60-second BICS eligibility check:
https://form.jotform.com/262014113820037
Not sure whether you qualify? That’s exactly what the check is for.
FAQS
What is the BICS scheme?
BICS is a UK government scheme designed to reduce electricity costs for eligible manufacturing businesses by exempting them from certain non-commodity charges.
Who qualifies for the BICS scheme?
To qualify for BICS, a business must:
- Operate in an eligible sector identified by the government.
- Manufacture at least one eligible product.
- Be energy-intensive enough to incur non-commodity charges but not necessarily meet the stricter thresholds of other schemes like the Supercharger or EII exemptions
Complete our form today and we will let you know whether you will be eligible
How does the BICS scheme work?
From April 2027, qualifying manufacturers will be exempt from the indirect costs of three specific schemes: the Renewables Obligation (RO), Feed-in Tariffs (FiT), and the Capacity Market (CM), which are non-commodity charges on electricity bills.
This relief can reduce electricity costs by up to £35–£40 per MWh, potentially cutting bills by up to 25% for qualifying businesses.