POWER PRICE PROBLEMS

PUBS ARE CRIPPLED BY COSTS

NORTH Queensland publicans are struggling to keep pace with crippling electricity costs.

Pub owners who are spending exorbitant sums each month on power are desperately searching for ways to reduce overheads.

Manager of Townsville’s historic West End Hotel Melita Lockhart said the hotel and its two bottle shops incurred monthly electricity charges between $ 13,000 and $ 17,000.

She said the electricity charges for the hotel were $ 7000.

Each of the bottle shops have power costs of between $ 3000 and $ 5000 a month.

“Electricity costs are terrible. There is very little you can do to bring them down.

“And now we are facing a container tax which is a tax on the containers that the alcohol is packaged in. You have to sell a lot of beer to stay even,” Ms Lockhart said.

Marshall Colwell from the Arcadia Village Hotel on Mag- netic Island said electricity costs were beating publicans.

“We’re paying $ 335 a day in electricity. You have to sell a lot of beers just to pay your electricity bill,” he said.

Mr Colwell said his power bill had jumped from $ 3000 a month in 2014 to more than $ 10,000 a month.

“Even in a quiet month now, electricity costs us $ 10,500. Pubs are trying everything they can to cut costs,” he said.

Dave Moore from the En- terprise Hotel in Charters Towers said power was the biggest cost facing hotel operators and the one the one thing they could do the least about.

“It’s absolutely killing us,” he said.

Some hotels are turning off cold rooms at midnight to reduce power bills. Others are taking measures like installing LED lighting and ensuring airconditioners are not running unnecessarily.

But, most say these are Band Aid measures and that despite trying to cut costs they are losing the battle against electricity price rises.

One company with hotels in North Queensland is spending $ 80,000 a month on electricity. Even small Outback pubs are battling against the rising tide of electricity costs.

Bill Johnston operates the Thirsty Camel Hotel at Duchess, 100km south of Mt Isa on a dirt road.

“Electricity prices will kill us in the end. Just kill us,” Mr Johnston said.

He has no tap beer and serves stubbies and cans from one cold room. The cold room is turned off at midnight and switched on again at 5am. He is still spending $ 2500 a quarter on power.

“Six years ago it was $ 900 a quarter. It just keeps going up no matter what we try and do,” he said.

At Crocodile Dundee’s Walkabout Creek Hotel at McKinlay 100km south of Julia Creek, Frank and Debbie Wust are paying $ 1400 a month for power. This is despite having a solar system.

The Queensland Competition Authority released its draft determination on regulated retail electricity prices in February. The forecasts show a 4.3 per cent decrease for the typical customer on the main small business tariff.

In April, Energy Minister Anthony Lynham said the State Government’s Affordable Energy Plan would continue to place downward pressure on power bills.