MANITOWOC, Wis., Sep 18, 2008 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX News Network) -- Steve Heins, vice president of communications and governmental affairs for Orion Energy Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:OESX), will be a featured speaker at the U.S. Carbon Finance Forum, which is set for Sept. 24-25 in New York City.

The second annual conference will unite investors with representatives from finance, industry and government bodies, to examine how carbon legislation will affect stakeholders in the U.S. and to identify existing opportunities in carbon markets worldwide.

Key topics of the forum include crucial foundations for a U.S. cap-and-trade market, expansion of carbon trading to a full suite of carbon products and the chain reaction in the energy market and regulatory changes that will follow. The conference is organized by Institutional Investor Carbon Forums.

Heins will speak at 4:05 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 24. Heins will address investors, analysts, energy company representatives, emissions traders, clean-technology investors, and policy-makers.

Heins will discuss the barriers to energy efficiency deployment and the barriers to properly certified energy efficiency projects qualifying for emission trading. Heins said the conference will entail a "robust discussion of energy as it relates to emission reductions and trading nationally."

"I'm thrilled to be presenting at the second annual U.S. Carbon Finance Forum," Heins said. "Now that it looks like we're going to have a serious discussion about a regional and national cap-and-trade market, Orion believes energy efficiency should be one of the first opportunities for emission reductions and emission trading."

Heins focuses on advocacy and education for Orion, promoting energy efficiency at the local, state and national levels. He is a frequent speaker and has published more than three dozen articles and op-ed pieces related to energy management, the utility industry and environmental issues for leading publications, including the San Diego Union Tribune, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Engineering Times, Energy and Power Management, EnergyPulse and Electricity Today.

In addition to Heins, other carbon trade experts speaking at the forum include Sam Napolitano, director of Clean Air Markets for the Environmental Protection Agency; Ken Newcombe, managing director of U.S. Carbon Emissions Trading for Goldman Sachs; and Bruce M. Kahn, director and senior investment analyst, Climate Change Investment Research Group, Deutsche Asset Management.

The organizer of the forum, Institutional Investor Carbon Forums, is part of Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC, the leading financial media company whose titles include Institutional Investor, Project Finance and Power Finance & Risk magazines. Its focus is on carbon trading and investment and the business response to climate change both in the U.S. and internationally.

For more information, visit www.uscarbonfinance.com.

Orion has deployed its energy management systems in 3,762 facilities across North America. Since 2001, Orion technology has displaced more than 357 megawatts, saving customers more than $401 million and reducing indirect carbon dioxide emissions by 3.6 million tons.

About Orion Energy Systems Inc.

Orion Energy Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:OESX) is a leading power technology enterprise that designs, manufactures and implements energy management systems, consisting primarily of high-performance, energy-efficient lighting systems, controls and related services for commercial and industrial customers without compromising their quantity or quality of light. For more information, visit www.oriones.com.

The Orion Energy Systems, Inc. logo is available at http://www.primenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=4540

This news release was distributed by GlobeNewswire, www.globenewswire.com

SOURCE: Orion Energy Systems, Inc.

Orion Energy Systems Inc.
         Media Contact: 
         Linda Diedrich, Director Corporate Communications
         920-482-1988
         ljd@oes1.com

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