On Friday, listeners will be hoping that Mr Berardino, whose company failed to uncover a slew of hidden debts while auditing bankrupt energy trading giant Enron, will explain how the accountancy profession aims to reassure investors that its audits can be relied on.

BBC: US Secretary of State Colin Powell

With power prices on the rise in recent years, Trane, along with competitors like Honeywell and Siemens, have seen a rush of new business auditing and overhauling energy systems for corporate and government clients.

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Remember the accounting firm Arthur Andersen, convicted in 2002 of obstruction of justice when certain partners destroyed records of the auditing work they did for Enron as the energy giant was imploding?

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Two years ago, the government required China's 1, 000 largest industrial consumers--which account for about a third of all Chinese energy demand--to establish their own programs and auditing systems to meet efficiency standards.

FORBES: China's Power Problem