As we start the new decade, energy efficiency remains a hot topic and high on the political agenda. The recent draft Copenhagen Accord was met largely with disappointment and scepticism; however, it did demonstrate political commitment to tackle climate change from some of the world’s biggest polluters.

Today, the question facing electronics companies remains the same as it was at the start of the last decade: What energy efficiency gains can the industry achieve to help tackle climate change? To answer this question, we need to look back over what was achieved in the last decade.

In 2008, consumers flocked even faster towards hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and in 2009, close to one million HEVs were produced. IMS Research predicts demand for HEVs will accelerate further, reaching almost 10% of car production by the end of this decade. Such rapid growth will only be possible with further advances in battery and power electronics technologies, with potentially huge rewards for suppliers. Battery revenues are forecast to exceed $40 billion by the end of this decade (up from ‘just’ $2 billion in 2009), whilst semiconductor revenues are projected to exceed $6 billion, with most of this accounted for by power products.

Legislation banning incandescent light bulbs within the European Union in 2009, led to a surge in demand for energy efficient CFL bulbs. Similar legislation in the US and China will lead to even greater demand, whilst advancements in LED lighting technology will encourage even greater changes in the way we light our homes, offices, factories and roads over the next decade.

Another was the ‘One Watt Initiative’ proposed by the International Energy Agency to reduce standby power in household equipment to just 1W. Standby power is estimated to account for around 10% of all household energy consumption.

Consumers have also benefited from having an increasing range of energy efficient home appliances to choose from. Driven again by legislation and industry initiatives, ‘high efficiency’ major home appliances accounted for 47% of shipments in 2009.

In 2009, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act set aside $11 billion for the development of a US ‘smart grid’. Smart meter deployment is forecast to grow rapidly as governments strive for an intelligent electricity grid and aim to provide more information to consumers about their energy use.

Finally, in the last decade great strides were made in the use of renewable energy sources, particularly wind and solar (PV) technologies. By the end of 2009, IMS Research estimates 148GW of wind power was in operation, with global PV installations totalling 20GW. This relatively fast adoption of renewable energy sources was driven largely by legislation and by promoting wind and PV as investable technologies. Despite this progress, fossil fuels still dominated more than 90% of global energy production at the end of the last decade. Over the next 10 years, wind and PV power deployment will accelerate, driven by falling equipment costs, greater innovation and continued governmental support.

This outlines just a few of the achievements of the last ten years. However, it also highlights just how much more there is to accomplish, and this will bring huge new opportunities for existing and new suppliers alike.

www.imsresearch.com