A new report says the future for the energy-efficient HVAC construction industry is strong, with global HVAC market revenue expected to increase from $22.8 billion this year to $47.5 billion within a decade.

The figures come from a report from Navigant Research. The analysis says HVAC market equipment accounts for almost 40 percent of worldwide energy consumption. This makes the market for energy-efficient green HVAC technologies especially important for building owners, officials say.

“Almost universally, building owners are investing in HVAC equipment to lower energy consumption, lower operating costs, and lower the impact on the environment,” said Benjamin Freas, senior research analyst with Navigant Research. “Not only is this driving incremental increases in the efficiency of equipment, it is shifting design standards — we’re seeing variable refrigerant flow systems being designed in place of unitary systems and the use of heat pumps is expanding.”

Unlike HVAC construction in the U.S., the Navigant study says the HVAC market in Europe is flat and HVAC sales in China are declining, the report said.

An executive summary of the report is here.