Sawt Falasteen - Venice glassblowers scorched by blazing energy bills

"It's a huge problem... A hurricane has hit the economy," Luciano Gambaro, head of the Promovetro glass association, told AFP, describing bills that have risen a whopping 600 percent.

Murano's artisans fashion everything from tiny, coloured animals to majestic chandeliers, seven days a week.

To do so, they need one key thing: heat. Energy is their second biggest expense, after labour costs, and they are suffering from record gas prices worldwide.

They were paying 20 cents ($0.23) per cubic metre until September.

"On the December bill, the price was 1.27 euros, a rise of over 600 percent," said Gambaro, who employs six people and is feeling the strain.

There have been glassmakers on Murano -- a series of islands linked by bridges -- since the 13th century, when they were moved from Venice proper after devastating fires which began in their furnaces.

Some have kept their creations in vogue by partnering with renowned designers. Others have seen their glass included in art displayed in major museums.

In a bid to stave off a crisis, the Veneto region forked out three million euros in November to help compensate for the glassmakers' spiralling energy costs.

"Unfortunately, that will all be used up by the end of February," said Gambaro, who admitted to being "very worried" about the prospect of "paying the full price from March".

It is "a bigger problem than Covid", he said, in reference to the coronavirus pandemic which hit Italy in 2020, forcing a series of financially-punishing lockdowns, and emptying Venice of its big-spending tourists.

- 'Tip of the iceberg' -

Cristiano Ferro, whose company Effetre Murano employs 32 people and makes semi-finished products -- brightly coloured blocks, rods and sheets to be shaped and crafted by glassmakers -- in 16 kilns, says gas prices are "just the tip of the iceberg".

"All the raw materials have increased by 20, 30, 40, 50 percent: sand, soda and all the mineral oxides used to colour the glass," he said.

Companies like his have few solutions, apart from upping their own prices.

"We have increased the costs by 15 to 30 percent, now we'll see how the market reacts," Gambaro said.

There is no quick fix: it is very costly to shut down and restart the furnaces.

Instead, he said European countries need to put pressure on supply countries -- in this case Russia -- with jointly-agreed countermeasures.

- 'We will overcome it' -

It is not just the workshops along Murano's picturesque canals that are feeling the pain.

Manufacturers and consumers across Italy are being hit by soaring gas and electricity bills, and the government has so far pledged 5.5 billion euros in support.

Despite the threat to Murano and its glassmakers, Gambaro refuses to despair.

"We have a problem, but we will overcome it," he said. "We have been here for a thousand years."

K.AbuDahab--SF-PST