– This means that we can put aside gloomy plans for closure. That’s what merchant and owner of Joker Bygland Tor Ånon Kleivane says. This week, the municipal council in Bygland decided to set aside NOK 500,000 for the four grocery stores in the municipality. The money will cover 90 per cent of the stores’ additional costs for electricity from June to December this year. – I tried not to take anything for granted. This is a help we could not demand, only hope for. Now I am extremely happy, says Kleivane. Before the decision, he feared that increased costs could mean the hook on the door for the store. He points out that the support that will come now will only last for the first time. The shops in Bygland are not included in the government’s electricity support scheme for business, because it is limited to businesses with at least 3 per cent electricity intensity in the first half of 2022. Merchant Tor Ånon Kleivane does not think the shop could be operated for very long without electricity support from the municipality. Photo: Ina Marie Sigurdsen / news Fears that many shops may disappear – For the shops that receive this support, it is probably the salvation, but it is a shame for shops that do not, says Steinar Fredheim. He is Head of Department in the Merkur programme, which is the Ministry of Local Government and Districts’ program for developing and strengthening shops in District Norway. Fredheim says he is worried about the future of many stores in power zones N01, N02 and N05, where Merkur has around 180 stores. – Estimates from various quarters say that we may risk that up to 50 per cent of the Merkur stores in these zones may disappear if measures are not initiated or the electricity price changes, he says. The electricity costs are eating up the shop’s profit Per Arne Røsten is one of many shop owners in rural Norway who are struggling to keep operations going. He and his family run the convenience store at Elgå in Engerdal, close to lake Femunden. – The electricity costs eat up the store’s profit, which is what we live on, says Røsten. In September, he had to fork out over NOK 44,000 for the electricity bill. Before the electricity crisis, the bill was under NOK 6,000. The support comes from increased power revenues The support given in Bygland in Agder comes, among other things, from increased power revenues, says mayor Sigbjørn Aas Fossland (Ap). – We are not exactly a large power municipality, but we have extraordinary income now. This means that we are able to provide such assistance. He says they have to have milk and bread in a municipality.
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The grocery stores in Bygland saved – get 500,000 in electricity support – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
