You’ll have spotted that the Government is seeking views on whether to widen the scope of eligibility for energy intensive industries (EIIs) for exemption from a proportion of the indirect costs of the renewable electricity support schemes.

If you’re interested in getting involved and making your voice heard, we’ve collected together the full catalogue of questions that BEIS is asking…

1. Should the level of eligibility threshold for the exemption schemes be maintained at 20% electricity intensity? If yes, please explain why. If no, please provide evidence of the existence and extent of any competitive distortions that would suggest that the current electricity intensity threshold should be changed.

2. If the current 20% electricity intensity threshold is lowered, should it be set at 17%, 15% or 10%? Please provide any explanation or information available to support your view.

3. Do you agree with our proposal not to include options below 10% electricity intensity in the consideration of a lower eligibility threshold for exemption schemes? Please provide any explanation or information available to support your view.

4. Should the aid intensity be reduced for EIIs in a lower tier of electricity intensity in order to manage costs for other consumers? Please provide any explanation or information to support your view.

5. If the aid intensity is reduced for EIIs in a lower tier of electricity intensity, do you agree with the structure set out in paragraph 4.8. If no, please explain what structure you would prefer.

6. Do you have any other suggestions for achieving the right balance between supporting EIIs and managing the cost to other consumers? If so, please tell us.

7. What was your company turnover in your last financial year?

8. What was your average electricity intensity in the last three financial years?

9. Are there any other competitive issues that ineligible businesses face from eligible EIIs? If any, please explain

10. Do you have evidence which would help us to improve the estimated impact of each of the options for a lower electricity intensity threshold? If so, please provide the evidence.

11. Do you have any other comments on the Impact Assessment?

12. Do you agree with the proposal not to redistribute the value of recovered over- exemptions back to suppliers of other consumers (who could pass on the savings to consumers)? Please set out your reasons.

13. Do you agree with the proposal that, where a meter is not in use for the entire preceding calendar year, the exemption proportion on the EII certificate should be based on the period of at least three months prior to application throughout which the meter was in use? If not, please explain why.

14. Do you agree with the proposal that, where a meter is not in use for the entire preceding calendar year, the exemption proportion should be reviewed on receipt of each quarterly report until it is based on a total of at least 12 months of available data? If not, please explain why.

15. Do you agree with the proposal that, where a business starts to share a meter or stops sharing a meter, the exemption proportion on the EII certificate should be based on the period of at least three months since the change in meter-sharing arrangement? If not, please explain why.

16. Do you agree with the proposal that, where a business starts or stops making an ineligible product using electricity from a meter, the exemption proportion on the EII certificate should be based on the period of at least three months since the change in meter use? If not, please explain why.

17. Do you agree with the proposal that, for existing businesses, certificates should expire at the end of June or, where this would result in the certificate expiring after 6 months or less, the end of the following June? If not, please explain why.

18. Do you agree with the proposal that businesses must report to BEIS before the last working day in the months of March, June, September and December on whether they are still carrying out the ‘specified activity’ (ie making the eligible product) to which the certificate relates? If not, please explain why.

Want to make your voice heard? 

Respond online by 7th September 2108 at: https://beisgovuk.citizenspace.com/im/widening-eligibility-for-eii-industries