Guernsey Chip Shop Foresees Price Hikes Following Gas Bill Increase

A chip shop located in Guernsey has indicated that its prices are expected to rise following an announcement from the island’s gas supplier regarding a 10% increase in utility bills, effective in the new year. Kim Ashplant, who co-owns Beetons chip shop, stated that gas represents a significant operational expense, and these elevated costs would inevitably be passed on to consumers. Island Energy disclosed the “unavoidable” price hike on Tuesday, attributing it to “geopolitical events in Europe” that have impacted wholesale prices. Mrs. Ashplant commented that the establishment intends to absorb as much of the expenses as feasible, but she described the gas price escalation as a “worry.” She elaborated, “We will try to keep everything down as much as we can, but we’ve heard that fish is going up from the first of January and now the gas is going to go up as well.” Mrs. Ashplant added, “The gas price does worry us, our big range is gas.” She concluded, “It’s something that we can’t just let go and there will most probably be an increase.” The proprietors indicated their intention to reassess pricing in the new year, while acknowledging the realities of consumer spending habits. Mrs. Ashplant stated, “We don’t want to push ourselves out of the boundaries of people coming to get their fish and chips.” She further reflected, “But what’s going to go first? It’s not going to be their weekly shop, it’s going to be their takeaway. “Maybe they won’t have one every week, maybe it will be every month.”” Follow BBC Guernsey on X and Facebook. Send your story ideas to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.