Energy Bills Discount Scheme

Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS)

The EBRS came into effect on the 1st of October 2022 to help non-domestic energy customers by providing financial assistance on energy bills.

This discount on gas and electricity unit prices is calculated by taking the estimated wholesale portion of the unit price you would be paying during the winter, and then comparing it to a baseline ‘government supported price’ – this is lower than wholesale prices currently expected for the upcoming winter months.

The ‘government supported price’ is the same amount across all suppliers and is set at £211 per megawatt hour (MWh) for electricity and £75 per MWh for gas.

Read our Energy Bill Relief Scheme page for more information.

The EBRS was always a temporary scheme with the government reviewing it over a number of months to decide what would happen after the 31st of March.

This is where the Energy Bills Discount Scheme (EBDS) comes in as its replacement.

What is the Energy Bills Discount Scheme?

The EBDS will launch on the 1st of April 2023 and will run for 12 months until the 31st of March 2024.

According to the HM treasury info page:

‘The latest data shows wholesale gas prices have now fallen to levels just before Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and have almost halved since the current scheme was announced.

‘The new scheme therefore strikes a balance between supporting businesses over the next 12 months and limiting taxpayer’s exposure to volatile energy markets, with a cap set at £5.5 billion based on estimated volumes.’

Those who are eligible will receive a per-unit discount on their energy bills – subject to a maximum discount.

Who is eligible for the Energy Bills Discount Scheme?

As with the EBRS, those on a non-domestic contract will be entitled to the new scheme – this includes businesses, voluntary sector organisations (such as charities) and public sector organisations (such as schools, hospitals and care homes).

Those who fall under these categories will need to be:

• On existing fixed price contracts that were agreed either on or after the 1st of December 2021.
• Signing new fixed price contracts.
• On deemed/out of contract or variable tariffs.
• On flexible purchase or similar contracts.

How much will my energy bills be?

As mentioned previously, those eligible will receive a per-unit discount on their energy bills from April 2023 to March 2024, subject to a maximum discount.

The relative discount will be applied if wholesale pieces are above a certain threshold.

The maximum discounts have been set at:

• Electricity – £19.61 per megawatt hour (MWh) with a price threshold of £302 per MWh.
• Gas – £6.97 per MWh with a price threshold of £107 per MWh.

However, there will be a higher level of support for the non-domestic energy users who the government deems as being ‘particularly vulnerable’ to high energy prices.

There is a full list of sectors that fall under this category, but examples include:

• Casting of iron/steel/light metals.
• Manufacture of manmade fibres.
• Weaving of textiles.
• Manufacture of beer/malt/wine from grape/cider and other fruit wines.

These rates are set at:

• Electricity – £89 per megawatt hour (MWh) with a price threshold of £185 per MWh.
• Gas – £40 per MWh with a price threshold of £99 per MWh.

How can I claim the Energy Bills Discount Scheme?

As with the EBRS, you won’t need to apply for the scheme – the discount will be automatically deducted from your energy bills.

Hopefully this page has answered some of your questions, but if you have any further queries, our team of experts are available to help, so give us a call on 01442 795 100 or email sophie.lewis@dolanaccountancy.com.