News

Business energy bills in the UK are coming under fresh pressure as two major cost-drivers are escalating:

TNUoS charges and the RAB Levy. The TNUoS fee recovers the cost of maintaining and reinforcing the high-voltage transmission network, essentially the “backbone” of power delivery. vest.energy+1 According to the National Energy System Operator (NESO), TNUoS demand-residual revenue is projected to leap from about £3.84 billion in 2025/26 to £7.52 billion in 2026/27 — nearly doubling. 

For businesses this means much higher daily standing charges tied to their connection band and location, rather than just consumption. vest.energy+1 Meanwhile the RAB Levy has been introduced to fund new nuclear power projects via the regulated-asset-base model. Carbonxgen+1 The cost is levied per kWh and will appear as an additional non-commodity line on bills, with initial rates set around 0.3455p/kWh (later rising) for supplier obligations.

Together these charges squeeze margins: TNUoS raises fixed infrastructure costs, RAB adds a new pass-through cost of low-carbon investment — both outside the typical commodity rate negotiations. Businesses need to revisit forecasts, scrutinise their tariff bands and negotiate contracts that account for elevated non-commodity charges. Ignoring them risks surprise jumps in standing charges and overall energy spend.

As the UK accelerates grid upgrades and low-carbon power capacity, these network and infrastructure cost-recovery mechanisms will become a permanent feature of business energy bills.

???? Key Takeaways

• Even businesses that keep usage flat will see increased costs because TNUoS increases are largely standing charges (i.e., per site/meter/day), not just usage-based. 
• The RAB Levy adds a usage-based cost (per MWh) which will grow with consumption.
• Together, these non-commodity cost drivers could add several hundred to a few thousand pounds per year for SMEs — and much more for larger businesses with multiple meters/sites.
• Because these are largely outside of “tariff unit rate” negotiations (especially the standing charge element of TNUoS), businesses need to budget and renegotiate with these in mind.

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