In recent weeks, the SNI (Neutral Union for the Self-Employed) has worked with Enbro, a specialized energy broker, to better understand the rise in the gas and electricity bills of the self-employed and SMEs. And the numbers are irrevocable. “For a small business that does not have crazy consumption such as a small hairdresser or an accounting office, it takes an average of 10,000 euros per year more for electricity, and 3,600 euros for gas.reports Olivier Maüen, spokesperson for the SNI. For a family butcher, a bakery or a small bistro, it takes 18,000 euros for electricity and 8,800 euros for gas more than a year ago. If we take a brewery, a medium-sized restaurant or even a dairy producer, the increase increases to 27,000 euros per year, just for electricity. Finally, if we move on to the field of small industry, particularly in the processing sector, we arrive at an increase of 125,000 euros for electricity and 90,000 euros for gas for a company that employs fewer than 50 employees.“
A huge impact for companies that cannot pass on these increases to their customers. “These figures are frightening, especially since the overwhelming majority of independents have already made efforts on their consumption“, he laments.