Last year, the Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) company has developed a tidal power generator that has now been connected to the energy grid at the Marine Corps Base Hawaii as part of the firm’s program with the US Navy to test wave energy technology, giving the US their the first-ever grid connection for a wave energy device.

The phase-out of incandescent light bulbs is part of the EU's strategy to cut greenhouse gases by 20% by 2020. Replacing the old lamps with more efficient models is expected to reduce energy consumption for lighting by 60% in the EU, equivalent to saving 30 million tons of CO2 pollution every year.

Ahead of the 2020 deadline for constituent parts of the UK to hit renewable power targets, Scotland has raised its ambitions for real-terms energy saving by switching to eco-friendly alternatives.

A delegation representing 15 Finnish enterprises said here on Tuesday they wanted to look for local partners to develop renewable energy, wastewater treatment, industrial waste management and other environmental technologies. Some of the Finnish companies introduced their clean technologies at a seminar held here on Tuesday were Neste Oil Corporation, Cargotec, GD Power, Kemira, Fincumet, YIT and Outotec.

If, in common sense, a buck saved is a buck earned, this proves all the more significant in energy savings, when a sum invested may result in higher profits and higher benefits. If, for an individual, energy saving merely means to avoid money burning big holes in his or her pocket, then for a company, it means better returns and better business efficiency, and for an economy, there are even greater dimensions of cost-effectiveness.

Realizing that natural resources are limited, Holcim Vietnam Limited since 2003 has aimed at sustainable production development by increasing the use of waste materials as main energies to replace fossil fuels at its Hon Chong cement plant in Kien Giang Province.

Apart from awareness in all the company, LaVie has also decided to invest in new technology as a way to reduce energy consumption. The deputy general director reveals that her company will replace all energy-consuming air compressors by smaller ones that fit the capacities of the current production lines. In addition, it has changed its lighting systems to LED lamps, and reduced water use as a way to cut energy consumption as well.

The two researchers tried to combine spintronics (electronics that use the spin of electrons to read/write data) with thermoelectricity, which transforms heat into electricity through the Seebeck effect. The spin-Seebeck effect (the conversion of heat to spin polarization) had been observed in action in 2008, but only on a metal rod, not on a semiconductor. They called their new heat-to-electron spin discovery “thermo-spintronics.”

The new nano-ceramics would be key components in the next generation of capacitors. Like batteries, capacitors store energy, but there the resemblance ends. Batteries are designed to collect energy over a relatively long period of time, then release it at a low, constant rate. Capacitors charge and release large amounts of power very quickly. The basic principle has been around since the 18th century, but until recently one roadblock has been how to reduce them down to an efficient size.

From 2006 to 2010, the project "Promoting Energy Conservation in Small and Medium Scale Enterprise - PECSME", funded by the Global Environment Fund and managed by the Ministry of Science and Technology, has implemented 201 projects in the brick manufacturing industry, 144 projects in ceramics - porcelain, 81 projects in the food processing industry, 35 projects in the textile-garment and 38 projects in the paper industry.

At the Vietnam - Russia Intergovernmental session which was held in mid-September, the Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang, and Russian Minister of Industry and Trade V.Khristenko officially signed the Roadmap for the implementation of Vietnam - Russia cooperation projects in energy sector (Energy cooperation roadmap).

According to "Nikkei" of Japan issued on 22nd September, the Itochu Corporation of Japan and Qatar Petroleum are having final discussions on building a petrochemical production complex in Vietnam. According to Qatar Vice President and Minister of Energy, these two groups would build a petrochemical production complex in Long Son (Vung Tau) with a total investment of about $ 4 billion.

One day, man-made buildings will mimic the human body in the relationship with the exterior. Penn State University researchers are about to study and implement a model that uses the sensitivity and flexibility of human cells to build “skins” that will give buildings the possibility to self-adapt to the exterior, to regulate their energy use according to changes in the environment.

As part of the National program on energy efficiency and conservation, Energy Efficiency Office has collaborated with the German Energy Agency, ALTUS AG Company of German and Hanoi University of Science and Technology’s Center of New Energy to start the project "Installation of grid-connected solar system at the headquarters of MOIT to save energy and protect the environment".

We all know LED as being the flagship of green lighting, but what if those so-called “efficient” LEDs turned out to be even more energy-effective under certain conditions? The Kyoto University, in collaboration with Stanley Electric Co Ltd found a way to increase the emission intensity of silicon-based thin films by several times.

Being gifted with many active volcanoes, Central America wants to tap them for producing green energy which will cut its dependence on oil imports and also help reduce the CO2 emissions. Because the region is placed above shifting tectonic plates in the Pacific basin, it has great potential for geothermal power produced by heat stored deep in the Earth’s crust.

Recently-invented e-readers, though, do not have this issue, since they only use ambient reflections as their source of energy – mostly like regular paper. Still, current e-readers are limited to black and white, since their electrophoretic displays only know how to let light pass or block it.

Along with urban growth, the demand for use of energy in urban areas has increased rapidly, especially in big cities such as Hanoi, Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang and Nha Trang. In such circumstances, using solar energy is considered to be a solution that will help reduce energy consumption in urban areas and prevent climate change. This solution was discussed at a workshop themed 'Climate change and sustainable urban development in Vietnam' that was held recently in Hanoi.

Authorities have pledged to speed up construction of green buildings in response to the surge in building energy consumption that has resulted from the country's rapid urbanization. Li Bingren, chief economist at the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MHURD), said at a press conference Monday that authorities had made numerous efforts to save energy and reduce emissions, yet energy use efficiency remains low.

The King of Malaysia presented the trophy to the grand winner David Wendell, left, at the Earth Awards at Marlboro House in London on Thursday. David Wendell wants to revolutionize renewable energy by taking a page out of nature’s book, and improving it. His new technology captures carbon and transforms it into sugar — something that plants do naturally — more efficiently using artificial photosynthetic foam.