Nokia to halve energy waste from chargers left on standby

Nokia is pledging to halve the standby energy used by its mobile phone chargers as part of a new environmental push.

The world’s biggest handset manufacturer also says it will use green electricity to power 50% of its buildings by 2010 and reduce the overall energy used at its sites by 6% by 2012.

The initiatives, part of Nokia’s existing climate change strategy, follow the company’s decision to join the WWF “Climate Savers” programme.

WWF International director-general James Leape says: “When a global brand with a high consumer profile gets on board with enthusiastic climate action, it reinforces the message that we need to act globally and quickly on climate change.”

Nokia says about two-thirds of the energy consumed by a mobile phone during its use is lost when it is fully charged and unplugged but the charger is left connected to the mains – known as “no-load” mode. The company adds that over the past nine years it has reduced the average no-load energy used by its chargers by more than 50%. It aims to reduce the no-load power consumption by another 50% by the end of 2010.

Nokia vice-president of environmental affairs Kirsi Sormunen adds: “This is not about grand gestures but everyday things that when multiplied by the scale of our operations, or the 900 million people using Nokia devices globally, can have a major impact.”