A Derry-based business has been left reeling after their energy bills multiplied by more than five times in the space of a few months.
Family-run business Donegal Prime Fish, based in Skeoge Industrial Estate, faced an energy bill of around £1,500 in April this year. In August this jumped to over £7,800.
Owner Patsy Farren spoke to MyDerry and described how, without political intervention, businesses face a "very bleak" future.
Read more: Derry business to shut its doors less than a year after opening due to rising costs
He said: "If the rest of the winter months are going to be the same it is going to be very bleak. No one is doing anything to help us, we wonder what is the point at times.
"It is tougher than the couple of years during the covid pandemic. It comes to the stage where you just wonder do you close before it gets dark to save money. We have tried a few things but they aren’t working. We just don’t know how it could jump so much so quickly."
Patsy and his staff have tried cost-cutting measures already, but know that their best efforts will not be enough to tackle the ever-rising energy bills.
He said: "We are expecting another bigger one to come in for this month so I don’t know, we are trying to adjust and the more we adjust the bigger we get hit.
"We are in our contract with our electricity supplier until May and there is nothing we can do, but the supplier can break the contract if they wish. It is not an even playing field.
"All we can do is close fridge doors, freezer doors for longer. Our metre is read every half an hour over 24 hours. We have been trying to only open and close doors at certain times and do our own maintenance but it is not going to be enough."
For Patsy, there is only so much they can do without government intervention. Without it, businesses like Donegal Prime Fish will be left with little hope.
He said: "The government is going to have to step in and sort it out to keep us open and working. There is no one for us to phone or talk to, we cannot just ring a politician, they cannot do anything until the Assembly is up and running.
"Unless the government steps in there is nothing in my opinion that can be done. Every business in the country needs help, this is worse than covid 100%. If the bills keep going up it is going to drive people up the wall. No matter what we do, these bills keep coming and hitting us."
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