Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The 55,000 mini-bars in Swiss hotels consume far more energy than the average home refrigerator for a family of four, some 24 million kW hours in a year. The heart of the problem is the sad news for hotel clients who love drinks in their rooms that a 40-litre minibar consumes 0.9 kW/h versus the 0.24 that a 150-litre refrigerator uses.

The figures are part of an alert the Swiss government has issued to the country’s hotels to carefully compare the energy consumption of minibars and keep in mind, when replacing them, that the cost over a 10-year period, including energy costs, should be calculated.

Bern says mini-bars that use 50 percent of the energy are on the market and could save up to CHF2 million a year.

The only tip for minibar users in the government announcement is to remember not to place drinks against the back wall, for good air circulation.