Contracts for Difference, renewables obligation and small scale feed-in tariffs: apply for an exemption or compensation

A number of policies have been developed to increase the share of electricity generated from renewable sources including the renewables obligation, feed-in tariffs and Contracts for Difference. The costs of funding these schemes are recovered through levies on suppliers and ultimately passed on to domestic and industrial consumers’ bills.

The government recognises that, in the short to medium term, the resulting increase in retail electricity prices risks reducing the competitiveness of the UK’s most electricity-intensive businesses where they are operating in internationally competitive markets.

To address this, the government has developed an exemption scheme providing relief to some energy intensive industries (EIIs) whose competitiveness may be most at risk, for a proportion of the indirect costs of funding low carbon schemes.

December 2020 update

• guidance updated to reflect a new Baseline Electricity Price (BEP), also known as reference price
• undertakings in difficulty (UIDs) section amended regarding the application relevant period to take account of the impact of COVID-19 outbreak on businesses
• part 2 application form updated to reflect the new Baseline Electricity Price

See the list of companies awarded compensation.