Hewlett-Packard Co.(HP) executives say that the company expects energy consumption in electronic goods to become a rising concern among consumers. A lack of standards in the market place with respect to energy-consumption in electronic goods, however, is hampering awareness among them.

High energy prices and new environmental regulations are driving companies such as HP to put the issue of energy consumption at the forefront when designing products. HP officials pointed out that they expect consumption of consumer electronic goods to double by 2010.

HP officials said that business customers regularly include environmental and energy requirements when ordering products, as energy bills have a huge impact on competitiveness. Unlike the business market, however, consumers aren''t shopping for IT products keeping energy consumption in mind.

According to HP officials, this lack of awareness among consumers is primarily due to a lack of standards in the consumer electronics market. So far, consumers have become used to energy ratings on "white goods," such as refrigerators or washing machines. But standards have yet to be established for the proliferating range of digital cameras, printers and other consumer products.

But as consumer concern related to energy consumption issues begin to rise, HP officials say that they expect their research and development costs to rise in tandem. They however point out that the lack of standards makes it difficult to write specifications for products. Officials said that HP spent around six years preparing for a European Union directive, which took effect July 1, mandating fewer toxic substances in products.

HP already has about 1,000 products that adhere to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency''s Energy Star program, a power-saving model introduced in the early 1990s.