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4 | 2ND - 8TH DECEMBER 2016 | UTILITY WEEK SMEs 'missing out' on energy savings A survey by Scot- tish Power has found that only 1 in 10 small and medium-sized businesses claim to have decreased their energy con- sumption over the past 12 months. 60% Proportion of SME business owners who do not regard workplace energy efficiency as a priority. 50% Proportion of SMES that do not have measures in place to encour- age employees to switch off electrical equipment and lights at the end of the working day. 2/3 Proportion that do not have a printing policy in place. 1/10 Proportion that perform an energy audit each year. STORY BY NUMBERS Rising wholesale prices see off GB Energy Supply Seven days... G B Energy Supply has ceased trading, blaming rising wholesale energy prices for making its position "untenable". The independent supplier informed its 160,000 customers that the company had started a process "overseen by Ofgem" to move them to a new supplier, in a letter posted on its website. "It is with regret that we are informing you that GB Energy Supply is no longer trading and therefore you will be unable to access our website at this time," wrote managing director Luke Watson. "Due to swi and significant increases in energy prices over recent months and, as a small supplier our inability to forward buy energy to allow us to access the best possible wholesale prices, means that the position of the business has become untenable and as such we will now be entering a process over- seen by Ofgem to move you to a new supplier." Watson said their new sup- plier would contact them "soon" to provide information on how the process would affect them and gave a link to the "safety net" page of the Ofgem website. He urged customers not to con- tact their call centre to discuss the issue. "During this process, all customer contracts will be honoured, so please rest assured that your supply will not be affected," he added. Ofgem said it would now choose the supplier that would "best protect the interests" of the 160,000 customers who were with GB Energy Supply. TG "Could do better!" IEMA's chief policy adviser Martin Baxter criticised the chancellor's autumn statement for "doing little to demonstrate government's commitment to environment and sustainability issues". National media Czech EPH may challenge Slovakia tax Czech energy group EPH, a major player in Slovakia's energy sector, said it may challenge Slovakia's plans to double a special tax on profits of state-regulated industries. The Slovak parliament last week approved plans to increase the special tax on profits in indus- tries such as energy and telecom- munications, to 8.7 percent from January, to help the government cut its budget deficit. Reuters, 29 November US energy shares wait on Opec decision Rising doubts that Opec will forge a pact to curb output at a meeting this week has sent market expecta- tions for turbulence in oil prices climbing to the highest level in more than eight months. The CBOE's OVX index has surged almost 20 points since late October to 51.6. That brings the measure of expectations for volatil- ity in an exchange-traded fund tracking the price of crude oil to the highest closing level since March 10, according to Bloomberg data. Financial Times, 28 November 'Polish your protest boots' in Ireland Anti-water protestors should "pol- ish their protest boots" and get ready to start campaigning aer Christmas, Anti Austerity Alliance People Before Profit Ireland MP Mick Barry has said. He was speaking aer it emerged that most households will not pay for their domestic water service under recommendations contained in an expert report on the charges. The report of the expert com- mission on the funding of water services is to be published on Wednesday but details emerged last night. Irish Times, 29 November 4.3% Amount by which Yorkshire Water has reduced its carbon emissions in the past three years.