Energy
CA’s solar tax supporters are trying to run a “wealthy vs disadvantaged” narrative: It doesn’t have to be
A look at the California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) ‘s 204-page proposal for its proposed new net metering rules (NEM 3.0), as well as the comments of the initiative’s supporters, shows something interesting. Supporters of NEM 3.0 are arguing that the current net metering rules, NEM 2.0, are practically an assault on disadvantaged households and a multi-billion subsidy for wealthy homeowners.
This narrative could be found all over the CPUC’s NEM 3.0 proposal. In the document, the commission argued that the existing net energy metering tariff “negatively impacts non-participating customers; is not cost-effective; and disproportionately harms low-income ratepayers” since homeowners without solar are being shouldered with the price of maintaining the grid. A study of the state’s policies further noted that California ratepayers spent about $3 billion a year to support net metering.
As critics of the initiative, such as Tesla and other renewable companies and organizations in the state, launched efforts to combat the NEM 3.0 proposal, organizations supporting the CPUC’s proposal have adopted a pretty similar stance. Affordable Clean Energy for All, a coalition of groups that include open NEM 3.0 backers like Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas & Electric, has been particularly active in pushing the idea that NEM 2.0 takes from the disadvantaged and gives to the wealthy.
Kathy Fairbanks, a spokeswoman from Affordable Clean Energy for All, highlighted this recently. “It’s hypocritical that people who claim to want to help disadvantaged communities are advocating to keep a regressive policy that takes from the poor and gives to publicly-traded companies to fatten their profits, increase their stock price and shareholder wealth,” she said.
But inasmuch as a “rich vs. poor” concept is compelling, such a simplistic narrative hardly addresses the issues that critics are bringing up about NEM 3.0. While there is some argument in the idea that companies like Tesla are fighting the proposal since it is involved in the residential solar business, the fact remains that rooftop solar in California is growing fastest in working and middle-class neighborhoods. Not millionaires in their massive mansions — just regular working individuals that are learning the advantages and practicality of renewable energy.
Solar Rights Alliance Director Dave Rosenfeld mentioned this in a statement last month, as critics of NEM 3.0 delivered over more than 120,000 public comments to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and Governor Gavin Newsom. “This is where the rubber hits the road on blackouts, rising electricity bills, and air pollution. The correct path is to help millions more working and middle-class people get solar so we can keep up our progress and reject the utility profit grab that threatens to take us backwards,” Rosenfeld said.
Contrary to the idea that net metering takes from the disadvantaged and gives to the wealthy, an analysis by national grid modeling experts Vibrant Clean Energy has estimated that the continued growth of distributed energy resources (DER) such as rooftop, community solar, and energy storage, could actually save California ratepayers $120 billion over the next 30 years. “What our model finds is that when you account for the costs associated with distribution grid infrastructure, distributed energy resources can produce a pathway that is lower cost for all ratepayers and emits fewer greenhouse gas emissions,” Vibrant Clean Energy CEO Dr. Christopher Clack said.
While the CPUC seems very determined to ensure that NEM 3.0 is approved, the voices against the initiative are growing louder. Apart from Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who called the proposal “bizarre” and “anti-environment,” other notable personalities have expressed their criticism of NEM 3.0 online. These include, interestingly enough, two actors who played Marvel’s The Incredible Hulk on the big screen, Edward Norton and Mark Ruffalo, as well as basketball legend Bill Walton. California Governor Gavin Newsom also seems a bit more open-minded than the CPUC, noting that there’s more work to be done in the NEM 3.0 proposal.
“That draft plan that was recently released, I just had a chance to review, and I’ll say this about the plan: We still have some work to do… Do I think changes need to be made? Yes, I do,” Newsom recently said.
The California Public Utilities Commission may vote on its NEM 3.0 proposal as early as January 27, 2022.
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Energy
Tesla inks multi-billion-dollar deal with LG Energy Solution to avoid tariff pressure
Tesla has reportedly secured a sizable partnership with LGES for LFP cells, and there’s an extra positive out of it.
Tesla has reportedly inked a multi-billion-dollar deal with LG Energy Solution in an effort to avoid tariff pressure and domesticate more of its supply chain.
Reuters is reporting that Tesla and LGES, a South Korean battery supplier of the automaker, signed a $4.3 billion deal for energy storage system batteries. The cells are going to be manufactured by LGES at its U.S. factory located in Michigan, the report indicates. The batteries will be the lithium iron phosphate, or LFP, chemistry.
Tesla delivers 384,000 vehicles in Q2 2025, deploys 9.6 GWh in energy storage
It is a move Tesla is making to avoid buying cells and parts from overseas as the Trump White House continues to use tariffs to prioritize domestic manufacturing.
LGES announced earlier today that it had signed a $4.3 billion contract to supply LFP cells over three years to a company, but it did not identify the customer, nor did the company state whether the batteries would be used in automotive or energy storage applications.
The deal is advantageous for both companies. Tesla is going to alleviate its reliance on battery cells that are built out of the country, so it’s going to be able to take some financial pressure off itself.
For LGES, the company has reported that it has experienced slowed demand for its cells in terms of automotive applications. It planned to offset this demand lag with more projects involving the cells in energy storage projects. This has been helped by the need for these systems at data centers used for AI.
During the Q1 Earnings Call, Tesla CFO Vaibhav Taneja confirmed that the company’s energy division had been impacted by the need to source cells from China-based suppliers. He went on to say that the company would work on “securing additional supply chain from non-China-based suppliers.”
It seems as if Tesla has managed to secure some of this needed domestic supply chain.
Energy
Tesla Shanghai Megafactory produces 1,000th Megapack for export to Europe
The Shanghai Megafactory was able to hit this milestone less than six months after it started producing the Megapack.
Tesla Energy has announced a fresh milestone for its newest Megapack factory. As per the electric vehicle maker, the Shanghai Megafactory has successfully produced its 1,000th Megapack battery.
The facility was able to hit this milestone less than six months after it started producing the grid-scale battery system.
New Tesla Megapack Milestone
As per Tesla Asia in a post on its official accounts on social media platform X, the 1,000th Megapack unit that was produced at the Shanghai Megafactory would be exported to Europe. As noted in a CNEV Post report, Tesla’s energy products are currently deployed in over 65 countries and regions globally. This allows Tesla Energy to compete in energy markets that are both emerging and mature.
To commemorate the 1,000th Megapack produced at the Shanghai Megafactory, the Tesla China team posted with the grid-scale battery with celebratory balloons that spelled “Megapack 1000.” The milestone was celebrated by Tesla enthusiasts on social media, especially since the Shanghai Megafactory only started its operations earlier this year.
Quick Megafactory Ramp
The Shanghai Megafactory, similar to Tesla’s other key facilities in China, was constructed quickly. The facility started its construction on May 23, 2024, and it was hailed as Tesla’s first entry storage project outside the United States. Less than a year later, on February 11, 2025, the Shanghai Megafactory officially started producing Megapack batteries. And by March 21, 2025, Tesla China noted that it had shipped the first batch of Megapack batteries from the Shanghai plant to foreign markets.
While the Shanghai Megafactory is still not at the same level of output as Tesla’s Lathrop Megafactory, which produces about 10,000 Megapacks per year, its ramp seems to be quite steady and quick. It would then not be surprising if Tesla China announces the Shanghai Megafactory’s 2,000th Megapack milestone in the coming months.
Energy
Tesla launches first Virtual Power Plant in UK – get paid to use solar
Tesla has launched its first-ever Virtual Power Plant program in the United Kingdom.
Tesla has launched its first-ever Virtual Power Plant program in the United Kingdom. This feature enables users of solar panels and energy storage systems to sell their excess energy back to the grid.
Tesla is utilizing Octopus Energy, a British renewable energy company that operates in multiple markets, including the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and the United States, as the provider for the VPP launch in the region.
The company states that those who enroll in the program can earn up to £300 per month.
Tesla has operated several VPP programs worldwide, most notably in California, Texas, Connecticut, and the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico. This is not the first time Tesla has operated a VPP outside the United States, as there are programs in Australia, Japan, and New Zealand.
This is its first in the UK:
Our first VPP in the UK
You can get paid to share your energy – store excess energy in your Powerwall & sell it back to the grid
You’re making £££ and the community is powered by clean energy
Win-win pic.twitter.com/evhMtJpgy1
— Tesla UK (@tesla_uk) July 17, 2025
Tesla is not the only company that is working with Octopus Energy in the UK for the VPP, as it joins SolarEdge, GivEnergy, and Enphase as other companies that utilize the Octopus platform for their project operations.
It has been six years since Tesla launched its first VPP, as it started its first in Australia back in 2019. In 2024, Tesla paid out over $10 million to those participating in the program.
Participating in the VPP program that Tesla offers not only provides enrolled individuals with the opportunity to earn money, but it also contributes to grid stabilization by supporting local energy grids.
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