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Charities and small businesses say they will bear the brunt of additional energy charges when a new levy comes into force later this year.

The Nuclear Regulated Asset Base (RAB) levy will fund a new nuclear power station at Sizewell in Suffolk, but while large electricity consumers will be exempt, charities will be forced to pay the full amount.

Beth Wilson, CEO of Bristol charity Wellspring Settlement, said adding charges onto energy bills will have “real-world implications for the services we provide and the people we support”.

A government spokesperson said small businesses and charities are at the “heart of our communities, which is why we have extended business rates relief”.

Spike Island, a contemporary art centre in Bristol, recently funded solar panels, but say the new levy could add more than £1,000 a year to their electricity bill.

Kate Ward, deputy director, said rising electricity costs will “prevent us from switching to low-carbon heating like heat pumps, increase our running costs and put our work with artists at risk”.

Ms Ward added the government “needs to rethink how they approach electricity bills to make it viable for more charities and small businesses to make the right decisions for the planet”.

Sizewell C is being built over the next 10 years and will cost £38bn to build, it will supply electricity to the equivalent of six million homes for at least 60 years.

The government spokesperson said it is part of its clean energy “superpower mission”, which is the only way to bring down energy bills for good and “will also secure thousands of good, skilled jobs and billions in investment”.

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Most recently, he headed the Retail Banking division at British lender NatWest before stepping down earlier this year.

The Asia-focused lender has been divesting some of its businesses under CEO Georges Elhedery as it attempts to trim costs and simplify its sprawling operations.

Shares of HSBC were up nearly 1% ahead of lunch break.

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