Energy firm tries to trademark 'juice' and squeeze out council

A GIANT energy company is trying to stop town hall bosses using the word "juice".

Westminster council calls its electric car refuelling points "juice points".

But npower has named its green energy packages for householders "npower juice", and claims it owns the trademark. It is threatening to take council bosses to court unless they drop their phrase.

The legal battle could cost up to £200,000 - and taxpayers could be faced with the bill if the council loses.

Danny Chalkley, cabinet member for environment and transport, has written to the company in an 11th hour bid to halt court proceedings.

He said: "By virtue of our central location we have the worst air pollution in the UK, and our recharging points are a pioneering and innovative way to encourage drivers to switch to more environmentally friendly forms of travel.

"The Mayor of London has been so impressed with them that he has rolled them out across other boroughs, and has pledged to double the number across the capital by 2010. We believe npower's actions fly in the face of popular opinion and show they are out of step with the public mood. But there is still time for common sense to prevail and I hope npower will reconsider."

There are currently 12 juice points across Westminster and Boris Johnson has pledged £400,000 to double their number by 2010.

A spokeswoman for npower said: "We're disappointed by the council's reaction. Greenpeace helped us to pioneer npower juice back in 2001. It has grown to become such a market leading iconic brand that we feel there is a very real prospect of confusion."

The council said its legal advice is that npower cannot claim a word that is so commonly used as their own.