Applications have opened for the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS), which could cut electricity costs for eligible manufacturers by up to 25%.
High electricity costs remain a major competitiveness challenge for UK manufacturers, with government analysis finding that UK industrial electricity prices were the highest among its European neighbours.
BICS is intended to provide shorter-term relief by reducing electricity policy costs for eligible manufacturers, helping bring UK electricity costs closer to those faced by European competitors and giving businesses greater scope to invest, expand and strengthen their supply chains.
The government says more than 10,000 businesses across Great Britain could benefit from the scheme, which is designed to reduce industrial electricity costs and support investment across UK manufacturing.
Eligible businesses in England, Scotland and Wales will be exempt from paying the indirect costs of the Renewables Obligation, Feed-in Tariffs and Capacity Market. The government says the support could save manufacturers hundreds of millions of pounds each year.
Applications opened today (1 October). Businesses that are successful will receive confirmation of their eligibility in January 2027, with exemptions from Renewables Obligation and Feed-in Tariff costs beginning in April 2027. The Capacity Market exemption will follow from October 2027.
Commenting on the scheme, Blair McDougall, Minister for Reindustrialisation, said: “10,000 manufacturers will be eligible for the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) which has the capacity to cut energy cost by about 25%, equating to around £40 per megawatt hour.
“This bold action to support manufacturers is evidence that when we’re talking, as a government, about standing with industry and reindustrialisation, we really mean it. And it’s also recognition that energy prices are a huge concern for so many manufacturers, and are the difference between ourselves and our competitors.
“In addition, a slightly overlooked feature of BICS, is the fact that we are we’re effectively backdating the scheme, as if it had already come in. So, from the manufacturers I’ve spoken to who are applying for BICS, that’s a huge bonus, because it’s extra support for many manufacturers that’s already factored into their finances.
“If you compare BICS to the supercharger – which only impacts around 600 businesses – this scheme will have a really wide impact across manufacturing supply chains, and we hope it will be a signal of confidence.
“We have an extraordinary advanced manufacturing base in this country, and this is a vote of confidence from us that we have taken this decision to introduce such a wide-ranging scheme to support them.
“We recognise that energy prices are such a deep concern for industry. We’re obviously working at speed to try to deal with the structural reasons for that and to bring down wholesale prices, but BICS is a signal from us that we know that businesses can’t wait for that to happen, and that we need to give help to people now.
“We are seriously ambitious in terms of reindustrialisation and we will go as far as we possibly can in helping businesses not only with the challenges around energy prices, but also speeding up connections for new investment which were a huge theme at the recent Labour Party Conference.”
Who can apply?
BICS is aimed at manufacturing businesses operating in eligible frontier and foundational industries identified through the government’s Modern Industrial Strategy.
To qualify, businesses must be registered with Companies House, operate in an eligible sector, manufacture eligible products in Great Britain and meet the scheme’s minimum electricity usage requirements. Eligibility is determined using specific Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) and Harmonised System (HS) codes.
The government has published an online eligibility checker to help businesses assess whether they are likely to qualify. However, the checker only provides an initial indication; final eligibility will be determined through the full application.
How to apply for BICS
Manufacturers should prepare their evidence before starting an application, as applications cannot be amended once submitted.
Businesses will need:
- Companies House registration details
- Details of each manufacturing site covered by the application, including electricity meter numbers
- Electricity bills covering the most recent six consecutive months available within the previous 12 months
- Details and supporting evidence for the products manufactured at each site
- Evidence required under the scheme’s application guidance
- A GOV.UK One Login for Business; applicants setting one up for the first time will generally need a passport or driving licence to verify their identity.
One application can cover multiple manufacturing sites operated by the same legal entity, but businesses can only submit one application per legal entity each year.
The government recommends manufacturers review the full application guidance and evidence requirements before applying.
Applications are open now and close at 11:59pm on 30 November 2026.
While the scheme will no doubt provide assistance to many manufacturers, there are some within the sector that have reservations around the scheme and whether it will go far enough to ease energy cost burdens.
Chemical manufacturer INEOS recently took the decision to suspend operations at its three world-scale acetyls units at Saltend, citing gas prices that are now 12 times higher than those in the US.
Commenting on today’s BICS announcement, a company spokesperson said: “While INEOS welcomes today’s announcement, it demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding: British industry, and the chemical sector in particular, relies far more heavily on gas than electricity.
“The gas price in the UK over the past two weeks has been between 8 and 12 times higher than in the US. This is destroying our manufacturing base, threatening skilled jobs and increasing the UK’s dependency on carbon-intensive imports. Unless this imbalance is addressed, we will only see further decline with no benefit to the environment.
“We urge the government to support industry through the levers it has available today: provide fiscal relief by reducing carbon costs; open the North Sea to strengthen UK energy independence; and accelerate the introduction of safeguards to protect industry from unfair imports.”
*Today we are looking at ~8x UK gas ~$23/MMBtu versus US gas ~$3/MMBtu.”
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