A new forecast from Pike Research points not only to the accelerated growth of cloud services, but also huge energy savings in the coming decade.

According to the research firm’s “Cloud Computing Energy Efficiency” report, cloud computing is projected to cut worldwide data center energy costs by 38 percent, from $23.3 billion in 2010 to $16.0 billion in 2020. By its estimation, “Pike Research forecasts that data centers will consume 139.8 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity in 2020, a reduction of 31% from 201.8 TWh in 2010.”

And, you’ll be able to breathe easier too. Data center greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) drop as a result of the cloud’s growth, falling 28% from today’s levels.

The latest data falls in line with several recent reports heralding the cloud’s eco-advantages. Last week, Nucleus Research released data showcasing how cloud-based apps can result in up to 91 percent in energy savings. And last month, Microsoft, Accenture and WSP Environment and Energy released a report showing that companies can cut emissions and reduce power consumption by up to 30 percent by embracing the cloud.

This bodes well to the cloud’s image of a greener, budget-friendly technology. In a company statement, Pike senior analyst Eric Woods, states, “Few, if any, clean technologies have the capability to reduce energy expenditures and GHG production with so little business disruption. Software as a service, infrastructure as a service, and platform as a service are all inherently more efficient models than conventional alternatives, and their adoption will be one of the largest contributing factors to the greening of enterprise IT.”

Image credit: IBM