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DOE & EPA Release Report On Advancing Energy Efficiency In Data Centers

October 26, 2008 by Jeff Shepard

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have released the report, "Energy Efficiency in Data Centers: Recommendations for Government-Industry Coordination," which details the discussions and recommendations covered during a national strategy workshop. The workshop, convened by DOE and EPA, gathered representatives from industry, utilities, associations, and NGOs to identify the next steps for public and private collaboration toward advancing toward the goal of improved energy efficiency in data centers.

The report provides recommendations for key areas of collaboration between government and industry and detailed descriptions of interactive sessions in which workshop participants identified gaps and opportunities related to defining, advancing and rewarding energy efficient data centers. In addition, the report includes point papers presented by workshop presenters that highlight current trends in data center energy efficiency.

U.S. data centers consume a growing portion of the U.S. energy/electricity supply due to growing demand for the services they provide. Data centers used 61 billion kilowatt hours of electricity in 2006, representing 1.5% of all U.S. electricity consumption – double the amount consumed in 2000. Based on current trends, energy consumed by data centers will continue to grow by 12% per year.

The workshop and report are part of a joint national data center energy efficiency information program initiated by the U.S. DOE and the U.S. EPA. The program coordinates a wide variety of activities from both agencies including Save Energy Now, ENERGY STAR® for products and buildings, and the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP).