Businesses: Government to replace EBRS with Energy Bills Discount Scheme.

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  • Han_EONNext's Avatar
    Community Team
    Morning all 😊

    You may have seen the recent Government announcement (9th Jan 2023) that explained a change in how businesses and charities will be supported with their bills. As you know, the current scheme is called Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) and this will change from 1st April 2023 and become the Energy Bills Discount Scheme (EBDS) and this will run until March 2024.

    Under the current EBRS scheme, firms get a discount on wholesale gas and electricity prices. The EBRS applies to fixed contracts agreed on or after 1 December 2021, as well as to deemed, variable and flexible tariffs and contracts.

    How much will my bills 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


    The government says that the discount is calculated as the difference between the wholesale price associated with an energy contract and the price threshold. The discount is phased in when the contract’s wholesale price exceeds the floor price, until the total discount per MWh reaches the maximum discount for that fuel.

    Some non-domestic energy users in Great Britain and Northern Ireland are particularly vulnerable to high energy prices due to their energy intensive and trade exposure, (referred to as Energy and Trade Intensive Industries or ETIIs), these sectors will receive a higher level of government support, subject to a maximum discount. The maximum discounts and price threshold for these sectors are:


    • electricity - £89 per MWh with a price threshold of £185 per MWh
    • gas - £40 per MWh with a price threshold of £99 per MWh


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  • 5 Replies

  • Best Answer

    Han_EONNext's Avatar
    Community Team
    Best Answer
    Hey 😊

    Hannah here 👋

    Just a reminder to those that this scheme is now active 😁.

    So what is new?

    While EBDS is very similar to EBRS and the eligibility criteria is the same, the overall discount will be lower, with maximum discounts 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

    There’s a new element which will support energy intensive industries (referred to as Energy and Trade Intensive Industries, or ETIIs); these sectors will receive a higher level of support, also subject to a maximum discount. For these sectors, the maximum discounts and price thresholds are:
    • electricity - £89 per MWh with a price threshold of £185 per MWh
    • gas - £40 per MWh with a price threshold of £99 per MWh

    The government has published a list of sectors eligible for the ETII scheme at the following link;
    https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1128033/230104_ETII_List_for_gov.uk.pdf

    If you still have questions regarding the scheme please reach out to us or head to GOV.UK for more information 😊.
  • meldrewreborn's Avatar
    Level 91
    @Han_EONNext

    Thanks for that. Glad I'm not in business. This will hit some very hard.
    Current Eon Next customer, ex EDF, Zog and Symbio. Don't think dual fuel saves money and don't like smart meters. Chronologically Gifted. If I offend let me know by private message, but I’ll continue to express my opinions nonetheless.
  • Han_EONNext's Avatar
    Community Team
    @meldrewreborn Ouch, things can certainly be hard. 😦

    But we do have support for business going forward; you can check it out here 👉 Rising bills help.
  • LBCC's Avatar
    Level 1
    Hi Han

    David here. Trustee & Treasurer for a Community Centre in Northants. Large Victorian factory converted into rooms and halls, run by a charity with Parish Council support. Basically a village hall.

    We have been an Eon Business customer for years - gas and electric. Have three 2 year Fixed contracts taken started Jul (2) and Sept 2022. Two electric (historically because the building has 2 floors which had tenants upstairs - now all ours) and one gas.

    Now the EBRS was just that, a Relief! Has over the past 3 months softened the blow on risen energy costs.

    It was easy to see what we get back from the EBRS the difference between what we are charged under the contract and a (lower) amount set by the Government. I could just forecast scenarios dependent on how many rooms hires we had (Women's Institute, village clubs, kiddies parties, functions etc)

    However the EBDS seems to be differently worded - or am I reading it wrong? As all my bill calculations and forecasts are based on Kwh, and also we are on 3 rates for both our electricity accounts (Day, Night, Evening/Weekends). How do I forecast how much we will get back as a discount?

    Any help would be very helpful - I have to try and explain it to my fellow Trustees on Wednesday!

    Many thanks
  • Han_EONNext's Avatar
    Community Team
    HI @LBCC 😀 Welcome!

    I wanted to get back to you in time for your meeting so I do hope I haven't missed you!

    I am glad that the EBRS was able to help, I really am and it's lovely to hear it has helped many organisations who need it! With the EBDS being hot off the press we are yet to completely iron out the creases and break it all down so at this moment in time we are unable to look at your discount and accurately understand how much that may be 🤔. But we will update you as soon as we know more / have more clarity on the situation.

    Please keep up to date with this thread and our blog to find out the latest when we get more information 😊
    You can always email us at: hellobusiness@eonnext.com or call our business specific line at: 0808 501 5699 if you need any further advice or support.