IEA urges more energy-efficient gadgets

The IEA world energy watchdog urged action on Wednesday to make computers, mobile phones and other devices more energy-efficient as the number of users worldwide soars.

"Despite anticipated improvements in the efficiency of electronic devices, these savings are likely to be overshadowed by the rising demand for technology," the head of the International Energy Agency Nobuo Tanaka said in an IEA report.

The IEA "calls on governments to urgently implement policies to make electronic devices such as televisions, laptops and mobile phones more energy-efficient," it said.

It forecast that "over the next seven months, the number of people using a personal computer will pass the one billion mark."

The growing consumption of electricity by such consumer electronics devices "will jeopardise efforts to increase energy security and reduce the emission of greenhouse gases," it warned.

"Electricity consumption from residential information and communications technologies and consumer electronics devices could be cut by more than half through the use of the best available technology and processes," it added.

(c) 2009 AFP