Big savings in energy costs and opening new markets are among the top drivers for companies making their IT departments more energy efficient, according to new research from PriceWaterhouseCoopers.

The findings were published in the latest report in PWC's Technology Executive Connections series, entitled, "Going Green: Sustainable Growth Strategies." In it, the company surveys nearly 150 senior executives at companies around the world. Among the notable results are that 60 percent of respondents said energy savings are a top factor in their companies' environmental strategies. Another 40 percent of the survey respondents said that the growing demand for green products and services is opening up major opportunities for new markets.

Ever-increasing electricity costs are the primary reason for the push toward energy efficiency. And as companies require more and more power for their offices and data centers, they're seeing the energy bills skyrocket.

"The power density and the power consumption inherent in a data centre is just staggering," Tom Georgens, Executive Vice President of Product Operations at Network Appliance, explained in the report. "All these network components and associated services use a great deal of electricity."

As a result, HVAC is becoming one of the fastest-rising costs when firms take on more servers for data storage and day-to-day operations, and the market demand for greener servers is growing as well, and tech manufacturing companies are working to meet that demand. The survey found that 60 percent of manufacturers are developign green products, while only 33 percent of service-oriented companies said they were doing so.

Energy efficiency isn't the only way that companies are seeking to green their IT departments. Manufacturers are also looking to meet or get out ahead of legislation around toxics and recyclability of electronics products by reducing and eliminated hazardous materials, building products out of recycled materials, making those products more easily recyclable, and building them to meet standards like the EPEAT or Energy Star certifications.

This report from PriceWaterhouseCoopers follows on the heels of another report issued this month by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, which found that IT products can help lower a company's energy intensity, by allowing for more productivity per watt of energy used.

The full report, "Going Green: Sustainable Growth Strategies," can be downloaded from PriceWaterhouseCoopers' website.