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Tesla Energy’s quick installs hint at ongoing residential solar and Powerwall ramp

A Tesla Solar and Powerwall 2 installation at Santa Rosa, CA. (Photo: Nick Wood)

Published

6 years ago

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It appears that Tesla Energy’s highly-anticipated ramp is picking up some speed. With Model 3 production humming at levels that allow the company to begin distributing the all-electric sedans to international markets, the company seems to be intent in gaining back some momentum in the United States’ residential solar market, a segment that was, at one point, dominated by SolarCity. 

Tesla Model 3 owner Nick Wood and his family had been looking to add solar panels and a home battery system to their house in Santa Rosa, CA. The home had been affected by the 2017 wildfires, and PGE had advised residents in the area that there will be power interruptions during windy, dry conditions. With the family being all-in on electric vehicles — a Tesla Model 3 and two Chevy Bolts under a lease — the Woods needed a way to achieve power independence from the grid. 

The family filed applications for two projects: one for their main house with about 40 kW of solar panels and five Powerwall units, and another for a second house with 8.2 kW of solar and two Powerwalls. Both applications were filed around June 10. Following a site visit and once the loan terms and other financials of the project were approved, Tesla informed the family that the first Powerwall and solar panels were set to be installed on July 2. That was just over three weeks since the system was ordered. 

The Tesla installers arrived at around 9 a.m. on the day of the installation. The team worked simultaneously, with some working on trenches for the system’s power connections, others setting up the Powerwalls, and the rest installing the solar panels. Much to the Woods’ appreciation, the entire project was fully completed before the end of the day. The team even set up two electric car chargers at no extra cost. The Tesla team also gave the Woods their email addresses so that they could forward any pertinent information about the site to the installers of the main house’s upcoming 40 kW solar panels and five Powerwalls. 

In a message to Teslarati, Nick Wood mentioned that the installers had been finishing around one Tesla Energy project per day. The installers also stated that they have been particularly busy as of late, with an appointment with a residential solar and/or Powerwall customer being scheduled daily. Quite notably, Wood stated that his family now has to wait around 1-5 weeks for the county inspection so that they can activate the system. That’s potentially longer than the time it took for the solar panels and Powerwalls to be ordered and installed. 

A Tesla Solar and Powerwall 2 installation at Santa Rosa, CA. (Photo: Nick Wood)

Granted, part of the reason behind the quick turnaround time of the Woods’ residential solar installation could be their location. Being in California, the family lives in a state that is heavily saturated by Tesla. Nevertheless, the efficiency exhibited by the installers, as well as the team’s mention of busy weeks filled with project after project, hints at a ramp in the company’s Energy initiatives. 

This bodes well for Tesla’s residential solar business, which has seen a decline since the company acquired SolarCity in 2016. Since SolarCity’s peak of commanding 32.6% of the US market in 2014, Tesla’s presence in the country’s residential solar segment as shrunk, hitting only 6.3% during Q1 2019. Nevertheless, hints of a potential ramp started emerging last year, when Tesla started dramatically reducing its customer acquisition costs by spending only $0.40 per watt to acquire customers. This is far lower than competitors such as Vivint, which has customer acquisition costs of $0.94 per watt, and Sunrun, whose costs run at $0.90 per watt. 

Tesla Energy is pretty much a sleeping giant for now. The business has so far been away from the spotlight, especially amidst the production ramp of the Model 3, but it has a lot of potential. Legendary investor Ron Baron, for one, has estimated that Tesla Energy on its own could be worth $500 billion. Elon Musk and the company’s executives, for their part, have noted that a ramp in Tesla Energy’s activities is underway, with the CEO stating during the unveiling of the Model Y that 2019 will be the “Year of the Solar Roof and Powerwall.”

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Simon is a reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday.

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Energy

Tesla Energy had a blockbuster 2024

Published

2 months ago

on

December 31, 2024

By

Credit: Tesla

Tesla Energy has become the undisputed dark horse of the electric vehicle maker. This was highlighted by Tesla Energy’s growing role in the company’s overall operations in the past quarters. 

And as per Tesla’s year-end milestone posts on X, Tesla Energy had a blockbuster 2024.

Tesla Energy’s 2024 milestones:

  • As per Tesla on its official social media account on X, the company has hit over 800,000 Powerwalls installed worldwide. 
  • From this number, over 100,000 Powerwall batteries have been enrolled in virtual power plant (VPP) programs.
  • The Powerwall 3 has officially been launched in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, the U.K., Germany, Italy, Australia, and New Zealand.
  • The Tesla Megapack hit over 22 GWh in operation across more than 60 countries across the globe.
  • The Lathrop Megafactory, which produces the Megapack, has been ramped to 40 GWh per year. 
  • The Lathrop Megafactory has also produced its 10,000th Megapack battery.
  • The Shanghai Megafactory was completed in just seven months, and it is ready to start Megapack production in Q1 2025.

Powerwall owners’ 2024 impact:

  • As per Tesla Energy, Powerwall owners generated a total of 4.5 TWh of solar energy globally in 2024. This was equivalent to powering a Model 3 for more than 17 billion miles.
  • A total of 1.1 TWh of energy was stored in Powerwalls in 2024. This protected homes from over 5.8 million outages during the year.
  • Tesla’s Storm Watch feature for Powerwall batteries covered 2.8 million severe weather events over the year.
  • Powerwall owners saw collective savings of over $800 million on utility bills.
  • Virtual Power Plants contributed over 2.2 GWh of power to the grid. This reduced the need for 2,200 metric tons of fossil fuel peaker plant emissions.

Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.

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Energy

Utah’s rPlus Energies breaks ground on Tesla Megapack battery system

Published

6 months ago

on

September 24, 2024

By

Credit: Tesla

Utah-based rPlus Energies recently held the groundbreaking ceremony for the Green River Energy Center, a 400 MW solar PV and 400 MW/1,600 MWh battery storage project in Eastern Utah. Tesla Megapacks will be used as the upcoming facility’s battery storage solution. 

At 400 MW/1,600 MWh, the Green River Energy Center is expected to become one of the largest solar-plus-storage projects under development in the United States. Once operational, the facility would supply power to PacifiCorp under a power purchase agreement, as noted in a press release. 

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox shared his excitement for the project during the Green River Energy Center’s groundbreaking event. As per the Utah Governor, the solar and battery storage system represents a notable step forward for the state’s sustainable energy efforts. 

“This project is being built in rural Utah, by rural Utahns, and for all of Utah. When rural Utah thrives, the entire state prospers. Today, we’re not just breaking ground—we’re building a future of affordable, abundant energy in Utah,” the official noted. 

The Green River Energy Center secured over $1 billion in construction debt financing earlier this year. The facility is also expected to create about 500 jobs, many of which will be filled by local workers. With this in mind, the solar and battery farm would likely prove to be a boost to Emery County’s economy, enhancing tax revenue, strengthening public services, and offering long-term employment opportunities for the area’s residents. 

Sundt Construction will serve as the project’s contractor, EliTe Solar will supply the solar modules, and Tesla will provide the battery storage system for the project. Luigi Resta, President and CEO of rPlus Energies, noted that the Green River Energy Center is special because of the entities that have worked together to make the facility a reality. 

“It’s the partners that make this project special, that have made this monumental project possible. From our equipment providers to the onsite talent, and the support of the local and regional community, we owe this project’s success to each of you,” he stated. 

Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.

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Energy

Tesla Energy loses director who brought Autobidder

Published

6 months ago

on

September 5, 2024

By

(Credit: Tesla)

Tesla Energy is losing a director who brought Autobidder, a real-time trading and control platform that provides value-based asset management and portfolio optimization, to the company.

Rohan Ma, who has been at Tesla for just under eight years, announced he would depart the company on LinkedIn, aiming to take on a new opportunity elsewhere.

Ma posted:

“After eight years at Tesla, this will be my last week. It was a ride of a lifetime! Today, Tesla Energy is thriving and I can confidently say it’s in the best position it has ever been in to drive impact toward the original mission I signed up for. I’m proud to have contributed over the years to where it is now, and will be cheering the team on from the sidelines as they carry the torch forward and continue to relentlessly solve problems at the frontier of the energy transition.”

Ma started as the Senior Manager of Energy Optimization at Tesla back in November 2016. After four-and-a-half years at the position, he then moved on to a new role as the Director of Energy and Software Optimization. He has been in that role for over three years.

The exit of Ma is the latest in Tesla’s tough year in terms of losing high-level employees.

Earlier this year, as a part of widespread layoffs, Tesla eliminated up to 20 percent of its workforce and people like Rebecca Tinucci, who was the company’s Senior Director of EV Charging.

Tesla also lost Rohan Patel, Vice President of Global Public Policy and Business Development, and Martin Viecha, who was Head of Investor Relations, are just a few notables to depart.

Autobidder

Tesla’s Autobidder platform helps owners and operators make money by autonomously monetizing battery assets. It is a real-time trading and control platform that maximizes revenue according to business objectives and risk preferences.

Tesla Megapack, Autobidder to be deployed in big battery project in Queensland

Autobidder already has hundreds of megawatt-hours under management and continues to scale. It is hosted on Tesla’s secure cloud infrastructure that is engineered to handle large and complex computations.

Without Ma’s expertise, Autobidder would likely not be involved in Tesla’s Energy division at all, and although it is not frequently discussed, it is still a major part of the business’s growth over the past several years.

I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

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