Could you save £10,000’s on your Electricity Bill with BICS. The 60 day application window opens in October.

The British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) is being introduced to help qualifying UK businesses reduce their electricity costs to remain competitive amongst their counterparts in Europe and across the World.

The Government has now confirmed that the BICS scheme is expected to support more than 10,000 UK businesses, with eligible manufacturers set to receive exemptions from several electricity policy costs, potentially reducing electricity costs by around 3.5p–4p/kwh.

With BICS due to launch in April 2027, manufacturers should now be checking their eligibility and preparing for the application process and the team at SeeMore Energy can help.

Who is covered by BICS?

BICS is targeted at eligible manufacturing businesses in Great Britain who met a designed criteria of SIC code and HS code eligibility,

https://www.seemoreenergy.co.uk/bics-eligibility-calculator

Whilst other schemes have been in place to support businesses over the last few years, BICS is particularly significant for manufacturers that previously fell outside the British Industry Supercharger, as it has been specifically designed to provide support to a broader range of businesses.

If eligible, how is the BICS discount applied?

Eligible businesses will receive exemptions from the indirect costs of:

• Renewables Obligation (RO)
• Feed-in Tariffs (FiTs)
• Capacity Market (CM)

The exemptions will be applied through electricity supplier invoices, reducing the non-commodity costs passed on to eligible businesses.

The level of support depends on the proportion of electricity used for the eligible manufacturing activity:

• Less than 25%: No exemption
• 25% to less than 50%: 50% exemption
• 50% or more: 100% exemption

The Government estimates the benefit could be worth around 3.5–4p/kWh, which is likely to be a 20-25% discount depending your current contract.

Eligible businesses will also receive a one-off payment when BICS launches in April 2027, reflecting the support they would have received from April 2026.

How do businesses apply?

The application process will be managed by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and is expected to be data-driven and evidence-based.

Businesses will need to:

• Confirm they operate within eligible sectors (via SIC codes)
• Provide details of the products they manufacture (via HS codes)
• Submit electricity consumption data
• Demonstrate the proportion of energy used for qualifying manufacturing activity

Applications will be open in the following windows:

• 1 October 2026 – 30 November 2026: Businesses are invited to provide information to DBT to support identification of eligibility.
• 1 October 2026 – 8 January 2027: DBT will assess grant eligibility for businesses.
• November 2026 – 1 April 2027: Once eligible businesses begin being confirmed, electricity suppliers will have until April to process exemptions for eligible businesses.

How we can SeeMore Energy help?

As a member of the Midlands Business Network, we’re passionate about supporting local businesses and we want to remove the complexity that lies in the qualification and application process.

By engaging with us early, we can:

• Assess your eligibility against the latest BICS criteria
• Translate SIC and product classifications to help your understanding
• Analyse your energy usage and cost structure to estimate potential savings
• Support with application submissions and data gathering
• Ensure your supplier correctly applies the exemption to your bills

The window for application is strictly confirmed to 61 days between 01/10/26 – 30/11/26, therefore it’s essential you engage early to maximise the time for information to be collated and the application prepared.