Future Of British Business

Surviving Energy Bills Forces Drastic Steps by UK Businesses

  • Small firms face existential threat from whopping increases
  • Consumers face rising prices as companies pass on burden
Lisa-Jane FraserPhotographer: Fleur Challis
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Baking at midnight. Closing down midweek. Covering a barn roof with solar panels.

Lisa-Jane Fraser is trying whatever she can to keep her wedding and restaurant business in rural England running as energy costs snowball. The monthly bill more than doubled to £3,800 ($4,512) in March, and she fears it may catapult to £7,000 in November, when her fixed-price contract ends and puts the venue at the mercy of a turbulent market.