In a substantial move to advance distributed generation in the state, the California Energy Commission (www.energy.ca.gov) has certified the 30- and 60-kilowatt Capstone MicroTurbine(TM) energy systems as the first and so far the only products that comply with the requirements of its "Rule 21" grid interconnection standard. "The CEC and all of California's major utilities spent more than a year jointly developing the landmark Rule 21 distributed generation interconnection standard," said Dr. Ake Almgren, President and CEO of Capstone Turbine Corporation (www.microturbine.com; Nasdaq: CPST). "We are pleased that our innovative microturbine systems have now officially been certified as being safe for interconnection to the grid. We think this is a significant step toward growing distributed generation market access in California, and for Capstone differentiating its products in the California market."

The CEC action is significant in that it has the potential to greatly streamline the process for connecting distributed generation systems to the grid, avoiding both costly external equipment procurement requirements and extensive site-by-site and utility-by-utility analysis. CEC certification to the Rule 21 standard essentially reduces the interconnection review process from, at times, upward of one year to a targeted 2-to-3-week process with significant cost savings.

A universal interconnection standard for distributed generation has been under development for several years by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) (www.ieee.org).

Capstone COO Norman Chambers said, "CEC's certification opens the way for California businesses and public entities to more rapidly implement clean Capstone MicroTurbine energy solutions without the interconnection concerns that have, in the past, disproportionately impacted the economic advantages of doing so."

About Capstone Turbine

Capstone Turbine Corporation (www.microturbine.com; Nasdaq: CPST) is the world's leading producer of very-low-emission microturbine systems. In 1998, Capstone was the first to offer commercial power products utilizing microturbine technology, the result of more than ten years of focused research. Capstone Turbine has sold and shipped 2,000 commercial production Capstone MicroTurbine systems to customers worldwide. These award-winning systems have logged more than one million hours of operation serving, among others, the following applications:

-- Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs): onboard generation
-- Resource recovery: converting oilfield, landfill and sewage waste gases into electricity
-- Micro-cogeneration: combined heat/power/chilling/drying solutions
-- The 9s market: power security, quality and reliability

This press release contains "forward-looking statements," as that term is used in the federal securities laws, about Capstone's business, such as the effect of the resolution of grid interconnection issues on the growth and rapid implementation of Capstone energy solutions. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties that may cause Capstone's actual results to be materially different from any future results expressed or implied in such statements. These risk factors are identified, among other places, under "Business Risks" in Capstone's most recent 10-Q SEC filing. Capstone cautions you not to place undue reliance on these statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. Capstone undertakes no obligation to release any revisions to such statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. "Capstone Turbine Corp" is a registered trademark of Capstone Turbine Corporation. All other trademarks mentioned in this press release are the property of their respective owners.

For the CEC's list of Rule 21 certified equipment, see: www.energy.ca.gov/distgen/interconnection/certification.html

For further information on CEC Rule 21, see: www.energy.ca.gov/distgen/interconnection/california_requirements.html

For information on New York's approval of Capstone MicroTurbines for grid interconnection, see: www.microturbine.com/whatsnew/pressrelease.asp?article=39

For information on Capstone's UL Listings, which are prerequisites to Rule 21, see: www.microturbine.com/whatsnew/pressrelease.asp?article=148

For a current listing of major Capstone product certifications and compliances, see: www.microturbine.com/technology/certifications.asp

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