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British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme: What manufacturers need to know
The British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) is now open for applications, offering eligible businesses the opportunity to reduce their electricity costs by up to £40/MWh from 2027.
Announced as part of the Government’s Industrial Strategy, the scheme is designed to support manufacturing businesses facing high electricity costs, protecting skilled jobs and strengthening the competitiveness of UK industries. More than 10,000 businesses across Great Britain are expected to be eligible.
Who can apply for BICS?
BICS is aimed at manufacturing businesses across a range of strategically important industries. Frontier industries within the IS-8 include:
- Advanced manufacturing – including aerospace, automotive, batteries and space
- Clean energy – including hydrogen, nuclear, wind, heat pumps and CCUS
- Defence
- Digital and technologies – including semiconductors, AI, quantum and cyber security
- Life sciences – including biopharma and medtech
The scheme also covers foundational manufacturing industries, including chemicals, composites, critical minerals, materials, steel and electricity networks, which provide important inputs to these frontier industries.
To qualify, businesses must meet a few criteria, including:
- Be registered with Companies House
- Operate within an eligible sector
- Manufacture an eligible product in Great Britain
- Use that electricity for qualifying purposes.
- If less than 25% of electricity usage at the site relates to eligible manufacturing, no exemption is awarded
- If between 25% and 50% of electricity usage at the site relates to eligible manufacturing, a 50% exemption from the relevant levy costs is applied to all import MPANs on the site
- If 50% or more of electricity usage at the site relates to eligible manufacturing, a 100% exemption from the relevant levy costs is applied to all import MPANs on the site
- Use at least 33 MWh of grid-supplied electricity per year at the manufacturing site
Eligibility is determined using specific SIC and HS codes, so businesses should check the Government’s final eligibility lists before applying: Eligibility Checker
What could businesses save with BICS?
Eligible businesses will receive exemptions from the indirect costs associated with three electricity schemes:
- Renewables Obligation (RO)
- Feed-in Tariffs (FiT)
- Capacity Market (CM)
The combined benefit is expected to be worth up to £40/MWh, with the RO and FiT exemptions beginning from April 2027 and the CM exemption from October 2027.
Accepted applicants will also be eligible for an additional one-off payment in 2027 intended to reflect the amount that would have been eligible were the scheme in place in this financial year.
When do businesses need to apply for BICS?
The BICS Application portal opened on 1 October 2026 and closes at 11:59pm on 30 November 2026. Eligibility decisions are expected in January 2027.
Businesses will need to provide evidence to support their application, including information relating to their manufacturing activities, products and electricity consumption. Please check the Business guidance.
There is one application round a year, applications cannot be amended once submitted, so businesses should prepare early.
What should manufacturers do now?
If you operate a manufacturing business, it’s worth checking whether your SIC code, products and electricity consumption meet the BICS criteria. The Eligibility Checker can help confirm in minutes whether a business is likely to qualify.
Businesses that may be eligible should also make sure they understand the application requirements and key deadlines ahead of the 30 November 2026 closing date. We encourage you to sign up for the next webinars on BICS on 13 October and 17 November to find out more.
For more information, see: British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme – GOV.UK
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