A pub landlord has spoken out about his concerns that he may not be able to keep his business open as energy prices spiral.

Adrian Robbins, 55, known as Ade, has owned The Dungeon Inn on Turton Road in Tottington for around five years and is doing his best to combat rising bills.

One of his ideas includes turning off the lights in the pub. 

Ade said: “I have been there five years and never been as worried as I am now.

“I’m trying to cut costs as much as possible to try to sustain and withstand what's about to happen, but it’s not just me, everyone is in the same boat, especially in this sector.

“We've taken the decision to turn off the lights in rooms not being used.

“Outside lights will only be on early evening, but I will be turning them off leaving only the vestibule lights and window lamps on as to show we are still open.”

Ade added that the drinks fridges will be on but their lights will be turned off. 

TVs in the bar area will also remain off unless there are customers specifically coming in to watch sports, and the pool table will also no longer be free. 

Ade said: “With everyone tightening their belts, it's going to be rough times ahead.

“Even if we have good times from now until Christmas, after that we've got the likes of dry January and people tightening their belts after Christmas and New Year.

“I just can't see local businesses and myself sustaining as everything goes up, especially the monthly bills.”

The pub’s energy contract ended in September, so Ade is playing the waiting game to find out how much his bill will have gone up by at the end of October.

He said: “Some of the local pubs in the area have now hit the £2,000 a month mark and I know some others that have even hit £8,000.

“I'm yet to find out how much my bill is going to be but people in the area are looking around an average of £1,700 on just electric.

“Even with the 40 per cent help from the government's plan, the bills will still be double if not triple what they were.”

Ade hopes the government’s plan will help cushion the blow but says it is nowhere near enough.

He added: "Basically, it's a lot of doom and gloom when you hear people on the other side of the bar talking about their problems and all the uncertainty.

“I had two customers in the other day who work for a big name company whose energy prices are going from £15m to £85m so if big companies are feeling the pinch then what about us smaller ones?

“I've been here five years and I've never had any issues whatsoever. The government helped us all through Covid with grants and they basically kept a roof over our heads but since coming out of it people’s lifestyles have changed.

“Before it, I could tell you who was going to come walking through my door, what they were drinking, and how much beer to order, now I have absolutely no idea because people’s habits have changed and people tend to stay in a bit more.”

Ade believed that many became complacent over the years, not really thinking twice about flicking a light switch or boiling an egg so everyone will be feeling the pinch.

By trying to conserve the pub’s electricity, Ade hopes he won’t have to increase prices to keep up with the rising cost of living but remains cautious.

He added "Good luck to every one of my friends and colleagues throughout all sectors.

"Brace yourselves, this is going to be tougher than you think."

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