Bars and restaurants will close in 2022 with 6 billion more spending due to expensive energy. The total for about 300 public establishments it will reach 9 billion against an average expense of each operator of 16 thousand euros for electricity and gas. The data processed by the Federation of public establishments of Confcommercio ( Fipe) were brought to the attention of the Arera during a hearing aimed at verifying the general situation of the price increases. In 2021, the manager of a bar spent an average of 5,5 thousand euros for energy needs. This year there was the poleta “arrived after two years of strong contraction in consumption which put the sector's stability to the test. The closure of 40 businesses and the cancellation of 200 jobs are proof of this." says Luciano Sbraga, Deputy Director of Fipe-Confcomercio.
Traders close 2022 with 9 billion in energy spending
Even restaurants have gone from an average of 11 euros per year to around 34 in 2022. Traders are asking ARERA to be more vigilant so that the companies that supply electricity and gas immediately make available to companies the information useful for using the tax credits introduced by the Draghi government and confirmed by Giorgia Meloni. Public establishments are enduring costs that will weigh on the income statement almost 3 times more than in 2021. If a year ago bills accounted for 4,6% of the revenues of an average year, this year the incidence is 13,3%. On the other hand, consumers notice it every time they enter a bar or restaurant, although many establishments try not to review retail prices.
The request to Arera for greater supervision of energy supplier companies.
Are energy suppliers speculating ? In this case, it must be the Authority that monitors aggressive behavior, where there are unilateral changes to the electricity or gas supply contracts or where guarantees are requested, says Fipe. Meanwhile, i credits accrued for high energy costs must be communicated to the Revenue Agency by 16 March 2023. But it's a penalizing deadline, second Scramble because the credit calculation procedure is not always easy. It must take into account what the supplier companies may have asked for in the meantime. In this regard, however, it has already intervened the Antitrust sanctioning the energy companies and their promotion agencies, which with rigged phone calls proposed changes to the supply contracts still in force. The Arera can order further checks but until next March we can fear a surge in consumer prices charged to citizens.
