Wednesday newspaper round-up: Fracking, Sirius Minerals, Snapchat, energy suppliers

The government’s plan to establish fracking across the UK is years behind schedule and has cost the taxpayer at least £32m so far, Whitehall’s spending watchdog has found. An investigation by the National Audit Office (NAO) said the shale gas industry has launched only three wells in three years, even though the plan was to establish 20 by the middle of next year. – Guardian

A wave of corporate insolvencies, company profit warnings and a gloomy forecast of manufacturing investment over the next year has sparked concerns that Brexit uncertainty will weigh on the UK economy more than previously estimated. A survey by the business lobby group the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) found that the prospect of leaving the EU’s customs union and single market without a deal had led a majority of factory owners to cut back investment for the coming year. – Guardian

Sirius Minerals will crash out of the FTSE 250 on Wednesday after a torrid year in which its share price collapsed. The fertiliser miner will become part of the FTSE small cap index in another blow for thousands of retail investors. Last month the company lost more than half its market value in a single day after announcing that its $3bn (£2.4bn) funding plan for a potash mine in Yorkshire had fallen through. – Telegraph

Snapchat attracted more new users than expected in the third quarter as it narrowed its losses and increased revenue. Snap, the software developer behind Snapchat, said last night that the number of daily Snapchat users climbed to 210 million from 203 million in the prior quarter, beating the consensus analyst forecast of 207 million. – The Times

Energy suppliers will be barred from taking on new customers if they fail financial health and customer service tests, under Ofgem plans to stem a spate of costly collapses. The regulator yesterday announced long-awaited proposals to toughen checks on existing suppliers, intended to “reduce the risk and costs to consumers associated with supplier failure”. – The Times