SMALL and medium-sized business (SMEs) could lose as much as £3bn this year as a result of inefficient equipment and energy wastage, research has found.

The Carbon Trust has revealed out-of-date equipment is wasting small businesses’ money, but energy company npower believes much of the problem is that business owners simply can’t see the wastage and are losing money without knowing it.

Further research from npower also shows that many SMEs don’t have the time or the money to invest in energy efficiency actions, further adding to the problem.

The findings show that 30 per cent of the energy consumed by the UK’s business community is wasted, costing billions of pounds, and that office equipment is expected to account for 30 per cent of energy usage by 2020.

Statistics from npower also reveal that energy is wasted through means such as leaving office lights on overnight – the equivalent amount of energy needed to make 1,000 cups of tea.

Allan Robinson, head of products for npower energy services, said: “Even though small measures such as switching off equipment can make a big difference to energy costs, there’s no obvious impact of flicking a light switch.

“You can’t see your energy use drop instantly and bills won’t always register a change immediately, so there’s often little incentive to keep on saving energy, particularly when you’re busy.”