Bleak houses: Families struggle to foot France's soaring energy bills

(Reuters, 26 Oct 2021) One in four French people said they are struggling this year to pay their gas or electricity bills, as prices surge due in part to low gas stocks and a jump in demand post-lockdown.

Jacques Kadio has already cut his grocery bill, refuels his car less and turns the heating off when his children are at school, but still the spiralling cost of electricity is squeezing his household budget to the point of going broke.

The father of five, who has been out of work since quitting his job as a security guard a month ago after retraining as an IT technician, now faces monthly power bills nearly three times higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic, says a social worker who helps him manage the paperwork.

"We can't keep doing this," Kadio said. "We're doing what we can to handle these bills but as they go up it's getting catastrophic."

Wholesale energy prices in Europe have surged due partly to low gas stocks and a jump in post-lockdown demand, prompting governments to try to protect businesses and consumers from a bleak winter.

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Reuters, 26 Oct 2021: Bleak houses: Families struggle to foot France's soaring energy bills