AN OSWESTRY restaurant owner says his energy bills have risen by £30,000 overnight as the cost of living crisis bites – and he must now take extreme measures to keep the business going.

Salop Fish and Chips has been hit with the extreme price increase, going from £9k a year to £39k a year for its energy bill.

Harry Haralambous, owner of the fish and chip bar, has had to go through a lot of changes in the past few months, including reducing the number of fridges and freezers he uses, the sort of fish he buys and many more.

He said: "Gas and electric are the big ones, but fish prices have doubled in the past few months, oils and fats that we use have also gone up.

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"This time last year I was paying £12 for 12 and a half litre bottle, and now it's £29.

"It all started when the prices of fuel went up, because to get all the products someone has to transport it from somewhere."

Harry is planning on reducing the number of fridges and freezers he uses as a measure to lower his bill, going from two drink fridges to one, and cutting down his selection of products.

He also bought monitoring devices to help him keep track of the fridges that consume more energy but contain products that are not producing enough income to at least cover the cost of the storage place.

"I had to come to these measures" he said "I have closed three fridges and freezers so far, I have stopped selling ice cream for that reason."

Salop Fish and Chips is one of the many businesses struggling, but there are some lucky ones.

"I was unlucky," Harry said.

"My contract was up the other day, but there are other businesses that have renewed their contract months ago and now they don't have to worry.

"It's the competition that will be tough, I will have to put my prices up to cover the costs of the business, while others can keep theirs the same, and of course people will go there for a take away."

Now Harry is considering closing the restaurant side of his business as he is considering the costs of heating and light, and he already replaced the lighting to reduce the costs.