Business have been left fearing for the future after the UK Government confirmed it will scale back energy bill support from March.
Speaking in the House of Commons on Monday, James Cartlidge, the exchequer secretary to the Treasury, said the current level of help was too expensive.
Under the new scheme, firms will get a discount on wholesale prices rather than costs being capped as under the current one.
Heavy energy-using sectors, like glass, ceramics and steelmakers, will get a larger discount than others.
But firms will only benefit from the scheme when energy bills are high.
'Reckless'
While some industry groups welcomed the announcement, Ryan Crighton, Policy Director at Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce, warned it fell short for business struggling with soaring costs.
He said: “While the enhanced support for manufacturers will be welcomed by the many energy intensive businesses in the north-east, the breakneck speed at which this support is being scaled back for everyone else is reckless.
“We wanted to see clarity from government on the scale and duration of support to allow businesses to plan for the future. The only clarity this watered-down package will bring is the certainty of closure.
“For many battle-weary businesses, this simply is one blow too many.”
How it will work
Bills will automatically be discounted by up to £6.97 per megawatt hour (MWh) for gas bills and up to £19.61 per MWh for electricity bills, a statement said.
Mr Cartlidge told MPs that this worked out as roughly a £2,300 saving for a pub.
Big manufacturers who typically have much higher bills will receive a bigger discount, equivalent to about £700,000 of support over 12 months, the government added.
The Treasury said these businesses would receive more help because, with competitors around the world, they are less able to pass on higher costs to customers.