OT21815 | Energy Profits Levy: Energy Security Investment Mechanism

The Energy Security Investment Mechanism (ESIM) ensures that the Energy Profits Levy (EPL) will cease to apply if the average price of both oil and gas is at or below the ESIM threshold over a six-month “reference period”.

Finance (No.2) Act 2024 Section 19 introduced new Sections 17A and 17B into the Energy (Oil and Gas) Profits Levy Act 2022 (the “Act”). These provisions set out the circumstances in which the EPL will end earlier than the sunset date set out in section 1(3)(b) of the Act.

The ESIM regulations (SI 2024/1175) set out how the average prices of oil and gas are calculated for the purposes of the ESIM, including the data sources that will be used. If the conditions of the ESIM are met, the Government will introduce separate legislation to ensure EPL permanently ceases to have effect from the final day of the relevant reference period.

The Government will use the monthly Brent Crude prices produced by the World Bank to calculate the average price of oil and the daily day-ahead prices produced by the Independent Commodity Intelligence Services (“ICIS”) to calculate the average price of gas. The World Bank data is publicly available. Whilst the ICIS data is widely used by the industry, the daily gas prices published by ICIS are only available to fee-paying subscribers to the ICIS data service. As the Government recognises the need to ensure proper access to the legislation for all users, the daily ICIS gas price data and the World Bank oil price data used in each monthly calculation will be made available for inspection, upon written request, at HMRC’s offices at 100 Parliament Street, London, following the end of each month.

**ESIM threshold prices**

The ESIM threshold prices were calculated using a 20-year historic average to the end of 2022 and were set at $71.40 per barrel for oil and £0.54 per therm for gas.

Every April, the ESIM threshold prices will be adjusted by the annual change in the preceding December’s Consumer Prices Index (CPI).

The ESIM threshold prices for the reference periods ending on or before 31 March 2024 are:

· oil: $71.40 per barrel

· gas: £0.54 per therm

The ESIM threshold prices for reference periods ending in the financial year to 31 March 2025 are:

· oil: $74.21 per barrel

· gas: £0.57 per therm

CPI for December 2023 was 132.2 and for the previous December was 127.2. To calculate the new ESIM threshold prices, the current ESIM threshold prices are multiplied by 132.2/127.2 and rounded up to the nearest cent/penny.

The ESIM threshold prices for reference periods ending in the financial year to 31 March 2026 are:

· oil: $76.12 per barrel

· gas: £0.59 per therm

CPI for December 2024 was 135.6 and for the previous December was 132.2. To calculate the new ESIM threshold prices, the current ESIM threshold prices are multiplied by 135.6/132.2 and rounded up to the nearest cent/penny.

The ESIM threshold prices for reference periods ending in the financial year to 31 March 2027 are:

· oil: $78.65 per barrel

· gas: £0.61 per therm

CPI for December 2025 was 140.1 and for the previous December was 135.6. To calculate the new ESIM threshold prices, the current ESIM threshold prices are multiplied by 140.1/135.6 and rounded up to the nearest cent/penny.