SavWatt USA, which makes energy-efficient LED lights for streets and other outdoor and indoor purposes, is moving into a new location in downtown Baltimore, where it expects to create more than 500 new jobs in the next two years.

The company will move from its current 2,500-square-foot location on Eastern Avenue into a new, leased, 14,000-square-foot office, factory and showroom space on Wicomico Street, CEO Michael Haug said Monday. The new location is expected to open in March, he said.

The new jobs will be in the manufacturing, assembly, support staff and administrative divisions, Haug said, adding that SavWatt is receiving assistance from Baltimore officials with recruiting new hires. SavWatt officials hope to start hiring 50 new employees next month and to hire 150 new employees by the end of the year, said Haug, who joined SavWatt as CEO in April.

The company makes a variety of light-emitting diode systems with a range of applications, from lighting streets, billboards, gymnasiums, malls, warehouses and parking lots to illuminating flagpoles, according to its website.

In addition to its partnership with the city, SavWatt also partners with energy and utility companies in Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and New York and is a partner with the U.S. Department of Transportation, according to its website.

SavWatt — now with 20 employees — has been in Baltimore since 2006 after previously operating in Florida and New York, according to Haug. SavWatt is projecting revenues of $10 million in 2011. SavWatt's shares began trading on the OTC Bulletin Board last week; the company has a market cap of $1.11 million.

The company's expansion may reach beyond Baltimore, with plans to open additional factories in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, New York and Chicago.

"The LED lighting concept right now is completely nonexistent on the East Coast," Haug said, adding that SavWatt officials will apply for federal stimulus funds and grants to fund future expansion efforts.

SavWatt will invest $1 million in the expansion, according to information from the state Department of Business and Economic Development. Such energy and energy sustainability companies in Maryland generated $10.4 billion in 2009, according to DBED. Baltimore city officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

SavWatt also is partnering with CleanEdison, a New York provider of "green" education services to individuals, companies and government entities.

The two companies will partner to provide training courses in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification with the U.S. Green Building Council and other energy programs, Haug said.

Increasing demand for energy-efficient systems is expected to fuel sales of LED devices by 9.4 percent through 2020, according to GBI Research of New York.

According to LEDinside, an industry research company, revenues from LED applications are estimated at $1.8 billion for 2010, up 81 percent from 2009, with architectural lighting and projection for commercial purposes accounting for most of the growth.

Still, despite its efficiency and longer life, LED lighting is more expensive than conventional systems and "quite difficult for most consumers to accept it," according to Shenzhen Spark Optoelectronics S&T, a Chinese LED company. "Therefore, LED lighting still has a long way to go to become more common.