Electricity, Gas, Oil & Other Heating Costs: Codes 7200, 7201, 7202 & 7203

Energy costs get their own dedicated block of codes, split by fuel type — useful given how differently electricity, gas and oil prices can move relative to each other.

The codes, and what each one holds

Code 7200 — Electricity records electricity bills for the business premises.

Code 7201 — Gas records mains gas bills.

Code 7202 — Oil records heating oil purchases, common for premises off the mains gas grid.

Code 7203 — Other Heating Costs covers any other heating fuel or cost not covered by the three codes above. All four are Overheads codes and normally carry a debit balance.

Real-world examples across industries

Rural workshop, off the mains gas grid

A workshop with no mains gas connection pays £210 (£175 net) for electricity this quarter and tops up its heating oil tank for £660 (£550 net). The entries are a debit of £175 to 7200 (Electricity) and £35 to 2201, credit £210 to 2100; and a debit of £550 to 7202 (Oil) and £110 to 2201, credit £660 to 2100. Genuinely low-usage premises can sometimes qualify for the reduced 5% VAT rate on electricity, gas and oil, so it's worth checking the rate actually charged rather than assuming 20% across the board.

Restaurant kitchen, on the mains grid

Commercial catering equipment pushes usage well above a typical office — electricity comes to £480 (£400 net) and mains gas to £360 (£300 net) for the quarter. Debit £400 to 7200 and £80 to 2201, credit £480 to 2100; debit £300 to 7201 (Gas) and £60 to 2201, credit £360 to 2100. Splitting the two here matters because a kitchen's gas and electricity usage often move independently — a switch from gas to induction hobs, for instance, would show up clearly as one code falling while the other rises.

Manufacturing site

A production line running multiple machines plus gas-fired process heating puts usage in a different league entirely: £3,240 (£2,700 net) for electricity and £3,000 (£2,500 net) for gas. Debit £2,700 to 7200 and £540 to 2201, credit £3,240 to 2100; debit £2,500 to 7201 and £500 to 2201, credit £3,000 to 2100. Sites at this scale are usually on half-hourly metering with a negotiated supply contract rather than a standard tariff, which is worth bearing in mind when comparing unit rates against a smaller premises' bill.

Why this matters day to day

Splitting energy costs by fuel type makes it easy to see which one is driving a rising bill, which matters when energy prices move independently of each other, as they often do. It's also directly useful for anyone assessing where the business might cut costs or switch tariffs, since electricity and gas markets can be shopped separately in a way a single combined "energy" code would obscure.