Latest Policy and Governance legislation that could impact and/or may require action from our member charities, with links to further information where applicable.

The Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS)currently provides a discount on wholesale gas and electricity prices for all non-domestic consumers. This includes public sector organisations, voluntary sector organisations like charities, and businesses.

The scheme came into effect on 1 October 2022 and was always intended to run until 31 March 2023.

The EBRS was designed as a temporary 6-month measure to protect non-domestic consumers from soaring energy costs, cutting the cost of power bills and providing them with the certainty they needed to plan through the acute crisis this winter.

In light of this, the significant intervention was brought in to help keep people in jobs, prevent unnecessary insolvencies and afford breathing space for businesses to identify measures that protect themselves from high energy costs.

The government has been clear that such levels of support were time-limited and intended as a bridge to allow businesses to adapt. The latest data shows wholesale gas prices have now fallen to levels that applied 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 taxpayers’ exposure to volatile energy markets, with a cap set at £5.5 billion based on estimated volumes.

The EBDS will run for 12 months from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.

Eligibility for Energy Bills Discount Scheme

As with the original scheme, the new scheme will be available to everyone on a non-domestic contract including:

  • businesses
  • voluntary sector organisations, such as charities
  • public sector organisations such as schools, hospitals, and care homes

who are:

  • on existing fixed price contracts that were agreed on or after 1 December 2021
  • signing new fixed price contracts
  • on deemed / out of contract or standard variable tariffs
  • on flexible purchase or similar contracts
  • on variable ‘Day Ahead Index’ (DAI) tariffs (Northern Ireland scheme only)

The amount your bills will be reduced

As per the current scheme the government will provide a discount on your gas and electricity unit prices. Eligible non-domestic consumers will now receive a per-unit discount to their energy bills during the 12-month period from April 2023 to March 2024, subject to a maximum discount. The relative discount will be applied if wholesale prices are above a certain price threshold. For most non-domestic energy users in Great Britain and Northern Ireland these 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

For full details on the Energy Bills Discount Scheme, please go to: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/energy-bills-discount-scheme

posted 6 March 2023

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