The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory this week announced three research projects that aim to reduce the energy consumption of electrical devices, according to The Daily Californian.

The goal of the projects are to increase plug load efficiency which, the story says, represent 25 percent of energy use in California. The projects look at using information networks to generate power, reducing power use by gaming computers and enabling every device that uses energy to generate a report. The lab says that the projects could potentially save $2 billion annually.

The three projects are being funded by the California Energy Commission as part of its Electric Program Investment Charge program, according to the story.

Reducing plug loads holds great potential for energy efficiency efforts. The Department of Energy estimates that 20 percent 30 percent of buildings energy costs.