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Posted: Fri 2nd Oct 2026
2 min read
Britain is bracing for the steepest energy price increase since January 2023, piling fresh pressure on small businesses already navigating tight margins and rising costs.
An analysis from Cornwall Insight found escalating conflict in the Middle East has choked gas supplies to the UK and worldwide since the Iran war began in February, effectively closing the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping route.
EU gas storage has slumped to its lowest September level in 15 years, Cornwall Insight warned, signalling an expensive winter ahead for businesses running workshops, factories and production facilities.
Yet for thousands of small manufacturers struggling with those same energy pressures, the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS), which opened for applications this month, could slash electricity bills by up to 25%,
A one-off payment in 2027 will also reimburse savings backdated to April 2026.
What sets the scheme apart is its indifference to company size.
While many government initiatives favour larger employers, the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme, a flagship measure of the Modern Industrial Strategy, makes no distinction between a two-person joinery and a 200-employee factory.
The electricity threshold was deliberately set at 33,000 kWh per year per site, well below the 100,000 kWh that energy regulator Ofgem uses to define a microbusiness. Enterprise Nation analysis suggests that there are between 5,000 and 7,000 eligible businesses that employ fewer than 50 people.
Many of the qualifying trade codes cover sectors dominated by small workshops: specialist machining, metal treatment and coating, bespoke plastic products, and precision engineering. It’s worth checking via commodity code as well. The rules even accommodate businesses leasing units on industrial estates where the landlord controls the meter.
To qualify, businesses must clear four hurdles.
They need to be registered at Companies House with at least one eligible manufacturing code listed
They must physically make a product from the government's approved list at a site in England, Scotland or Wales
The site must consume at least 33,000 kWh of grid electricity annually, or about six months of bills totalling more than 16,500 kWh
An online eligibility checker delivers a provisional answer in minutes. But the application window is tight: it closes at one minute to midnight on 30 November, giving businesses just two months to apply.
Those who qualify will receive decisions by email in January, with discounts on renewable energy charges beginning in April 2027 and a further reduction on backup power charges from October.
The scheme excludes sole traders, anyone operating from home on a domestic meter, shops, service businesses, and sites that only warehouse or distribute goods. Northern Ireland is not covered.
Sites that make both eligible and ineligible products receive full, half, or no discount depending on how much electricity goes toward approved manufacturing. And applications cannot be amended once submitted, so preparation is crucial.
Applicants need their Companies House number, each site's meter reference (known as an MPAN, found on electricity bills), six consecutive months of recent bills, and half a year's evidence of what they make.
The person applying needs a GOV.UK One Login business account, typically requiring a passport or driving licence, and must be a company officer or have one's authorisation.
Only electricity from the grid counts, so businesses must exclude anything their own solar panels generate.
More than 10,000 manufacturers across Great Britain are expected to qualify for the scheme, which the government says will support investment, growth and job creation across the UK. Guidance is here.
The Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST) is running two webinars for a business update:
Tuesday, 13 October: BICS Business Update webinar
Tuesday, 17 November: BICS Last Chance to Apply Business Update webinar
For small manufacturers, the scheme's size-blind approach represents a real opportunity to access government support.
✓ Registered at Companies House
✓ Manufacturing SIC code from the approved list
✓ Makes an eligible product in England, Scotland or Wales
✓ Uses 33,000+ kWh grid electricity per year at the site
Applications can be made here.
Application deadline: 30 November 2026, 11:59 pm
Discounts start: April 2027
