England will change how councils account for business rates from renewable energy projects from 1 April 2026. The Non‑Domestic Rating (Renewable Energy Projects) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 update the 2013 scheme so that the shift to multiple business rates multipliers in 2026/27 does not skew the sums authorities can set aside from eligible clean power sites. The move lands alongside the revaluation and new multipliers confirmed in late 2025. (gov.uk)

At the centre of the change is a “relevant multiplier ratio” written into regulation 13 of the 2013 rules. In plain terms, it scales the daily amount a council can disregard so the result is the same as if only the national multipliers applied. That means the choice of Retail, Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) or the new high‑value multiplier will no longer inflate or depress the renewable energy totals a council can retain. (gov.uk)

Why now? From 1 April 2026 England moves from two to five multipliers: 48.0p standard and 43.2p small business, plus 43.0p and 38.2p for qualifying RHL properties, and a 50.8p high‑value multiplier for hereditaments with a rateable value of £500,000 or more. Government says the lower RHL rates are funded by the high‑value supplement, keeping the system revenue‑neutral nationally. (gov.uk)

Under the 2013 Renewable Energy Projects Regulations, billing authorities can disregard non‑domestic rating income from designated classes of renewable hereditaments, including new renewable power stations, expansions and reorganisations, certain offshore network assets, energy‑from‑waste plants and mixed‑use sites where rateable plant generates electricity. This sits alongside a long‑standing policy that authorities may retain 100% of business rates from eligible new renewable sites; 169 billing authorities currently do so. (legislation.gov.uk)

For council budgets, the message is stability. Government has been explicit that authorities should not lose out if a property qualifies for a lower RHL multiplier, and should not gain artificially from the decision to tax the largest properties at a higher rate. The new scaling factor neutralises those effects for renewables within the retention scheme, keeping local clean‑energy income steady through the change. (gov.uk)

What to do now. Finance teams should reflect the confirmed 2026/27 multipliers in NNDR1 and NNDR3 planning, ensure VOA records clearly identify renewable hereditaments in the correct class, and note that the daily disregard will use the new ratio from 1 April. Transitional Relief and the 1p Transitional Relief Supplement apply for 2026/27, but these sit outside the way the renewable disregard is calculated and should be modelled separately. (gov.uk)

For developers and investors, this removes a moving part in project models. Business rates treatment for renewables has been a rare example of local revenue linked to the physical footprint of clean generation; keeping that steady through the 2026 changes should help finance teams price risk with greater confidence while schemes progress toward build. (commonslibrary.parliament.uk)

Community value remains more than a line in a spreadsheet. Government guidance for England illustrates a 30MW onshore wind project contributing around £5,000 per MW per year to local communities, index‑linked over 25 years; many projects already go beyond this. RenewableUK estimates these community benefit funds total roughly £75 million a year across the UK, in addition to business rates flowing to councils. (gov.uk)

A few edge cases matter. Most renewable sites will not sit on an RHL multiplier, but officials note that some class E hereditaments could. That is precisely where the ratio avoids distortions, ensuring, for example, that a rooftop solar array hosted by a qualifying retail site does not up‑ or down‑weight a council’s renewable totals simply because the host building pays a different multiplier. (gov.uk)

What to watch next. Final secondary legislation setting the detailed RHL definitions and any further rating practice updates will complete the picture. Guidance on which properties qualify for RHL is already live, and the 2026/27 multipliers are confirmed; the renewables amendment ensures those policy pieces fit together without unintended side‑effects for local clean‑energy revenues. (gov.uk)