Energy
Tesla’s million mile battery is a golden goose for large-scale energy projects
Tesla Energy is a sleeping giant, rarely considered by analysts covering TSLA stock and largely underrated compared to the company’s electric car business. But something in Tesla’s pipeline may very well be a big catalyst that can fully awaken the behemoth that is the company’s Energy division: the upcoming million-mile battery.
Tesla’s million-mile battery is starting to look very close to production. Patents filed by the company have seemingly teased details about its characteristics. Elon Musk himself has spoken highly about the next-generation batteries, and studies from physicist Jeff Dahn’s team of researchers at Dalhousie University have suggested that such milestones are feasible. Tesla also appears to be gathering the necessary pieces for a massive play on batteries, as hinted at by its acquisition of battery-centric firms like Maxwell and Hibar.
True to its namesake, the million-mile battery is expected to support an electric car for 1 million miles, making them last significantly longer on the roads than comparable petrol-powered vehicles. Such a battery will likely give EVs an even bigger edge compared to their fossil fuel-powered counterparts, especially in terms of practicality. After all, a car that rarely needs maintenance and lasts a million miles is a better buy than one that requires an oil change every 5,000 miles and lasts only about 300,000 miles with extreme care.
Electric vehicles are not the only ones that will benefit from Tesla’s million-mile battery. Longer lasting batteries will also be extremely valuable for the company’s energy storage products, making them possibly last decades after their initial installation. This has a lot of positive implications for Tesla Energy, especially with regards to its grid-scale battery solutions. If Tesla’s batteries can match or outlast their fossil fuel-powered grid-scale counterparts, the company could very well see a spike in the demand for its battery storage solutions.
A good example of these benefits lies in how Tesla’s battery storage units are used to support communities that have no access to the power grid. With a million-mile battery, Tesla’s energy storage products could last for a very long time, practically ensuring that communities located off the beaten path could get access to sustainable power for decades.
The value of Tesla’s battery storage products, such as its Powerpacks and Powerwalls, is only getting more and more prominent with time. Tesla’s projects in South Australia are proof of this. The Hornsdale Power Reserve has saved residents in the region from intermittent blackouts, and the company’s Powerwalls are now being used as the backbone of a 50,000-strong Virtual Power Plant initiative.
Tesla’s million-mile battery can very well be the key for the Powerwall, Powerpack, and Megapack to dominate in their respective segments. A scenario where a Tesla battery storage system lasts decades is not too farfetched either since batteries used for stationary storage are not subject to the same strains experienced by those used in the company’s high-performance electric cars. Tesla’s batteries are already proven to be quick, cost-effective, and high-quality. With the assurance that they will last for a very long time, there’s a good chance that numerous cities and countries across the globe will adopt them for their energy needs.
When this happens, the sleeping giant that is Tesla Energy will likely be awaked fully. Such a scenario bodes incredibly well for Tesla, especially since investing legends such as Ron Baron have estimated that the company’s Energy business has the potential to be worth $500 billion on its own, on par with Tesla’s electric car division. The million-mile battery could very well be the key to this.
Energy
Tesla launches Cybertruck vehicle-to-grid program in Texas
The initiative was announced by the official Tesla Energy account on social media platform X.
Tesla has launched a vehicle-to-grid (V2G) program in Texas, allowing eligible Cybertruck owners to send energy back to the grid during high-demand events and receive compensation on their utility bills.
The initiative, dubbed Powershare Grid Support, was announced by the official Tesla Energy account on social media platform X.
Texas’ Cybertruck V2G program
In its post on X, Tesla Energy confirmed that vehicle-to-grid functionality is “coming soon,” starting with select Texas markets. Under the new Powershare Grid Support program, owners of the Cybertruck equipped with Powershare home backup hardware can opt in through the Tesla app and participate in short-notice grid stress events.
During these events, the Cybertruck automatically discharges excess energy back to the grid, supporting local utilities such as CenterPoint Energy and Oncor. In return, participants receive compensation in the form of bill credits. Tesla noted that the program is currently invitation-only as part of an early adopter rollout.
The launch builds on the Cybertruck’s existing Powershare capability, which allows the vehicle to provide up to 11.5 kW of power for home backup. Tesla added that the program is expected to expand to California next, with eligibility tied to utilities such as PG&E, SCE, and SDG&E.
Powershare Grid Support
To participate in Texas, Cybertruck owners must live in areas served by CenterPoint Energy or Oncor, have Powershare equipment installed, enroll in the Tesla Electric Drive plan, and opt in through the Tesla app. Once enrolled, vehicles would be able to contribute power during high-demand events, helping stabilize the grid.
Tesla noted that events may occur with little notice, so participants are encouraged to keep their Cybertrucks plugged in when at home and to manage their discharge limits based on personal needs. Compensation varies depending on the electricity plan, similar to how Powerwall owners in some regions have earned substantial credits by participating in Virtual Power Plant (VPP) programs.
Tesla is updating Cybertruck owners on its timeline of a massive feature that has yet to ship: Powershare with Powerwall.
Powershare is a bidirectional charging feature exclusive to Cybertruck, which allows the vehicle’s battery to act as a portable power source for homes, appliances, tools, other EVs, and more. It was announced in late 2023 as part of Tesla’s push into vehicle-to-everything energy sharing, and acting as a giant portable charger is the main advantage, as it can provide backup power during outages.
Cybertruck’s Powershare system supports both vehicle-to-load (V2L) and vehicle-to-home (V2H), making it flexible and well-rounded for a variety of applications.
However, even though the feature was promised with Cybertruck, it has yet to be shipped to vehicles. Tesla communicated with owners through email recently regarding Powershare with Powerwall, which essentially has the pickup act as an extended battery.
Powerwall discharge would be prioritized before tapping into the truck’s larger pack.
However, Tesla is still working on getting the feature out to owners, an email said:
“We’re writing to let you know that the Powershare with Powerwall feature is still in development and is now scheduled for release in mid-2026.
This new release date gives us additional time to design and test this feature, ensuring its ability to communicate and optimize energy sharing between your vehicle and many configurations and generations of Powerwall. We are also using this time to develop additional Powershare features that will help us continue to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.”
Owners have expressed some real disappointment in Tesla’s continuous delays in releasing the feature, as it was expected to be released by late 2024, but now has been pushed back several times to mid-2026, according to the email.
Foundation Series Cybertruck buyers paid extra, expecting the feature to be rolled out with their vehicle upon pickup.
Cybertruck’s Lead Engineer, Wes Morrill, even commented on the holdup:
As a Cybertruck owner who also has Powerwall, I empathize with the disappointed comments.
To their credit, the team has delivered powershare functionality to Cybertruck customers who otherwise have no backup with development of the powershare gateway. As well as those with solar…
— Wes (@wmorrill3) December 12, 2025
He said that “it turned out to be much harder than anticipated to make powershare work seamlessly with existing Powerwalls through existing wall connectors. Two grid-forming devices need to negotiate who will form and who will follow, depending on the state of charge of each, and they need to do this without a network and through multiple generations of hardware, and test and validate this process through rigorous certifications to ensure grid safety.”
It’s nice to see the transparency, but it is justified for some Cybertruck owners to feel like they’ve been bait-and-switched.
Energy
Tesla starts hiring efforts for Texas Megafactory
Tesla’s Brookshire site is expected to produce 10,000 Megapacks annually, equal to 40 gigawatt hours of energy storage.
Tesla has officially begun hiring for its new $200 million Megafactory in Brookshire, Texas, a manufacturing hub expected to employ 1,500 people by 2028. The facility, which will build Tesla’s grid-scale Megapack batteries, is part of the company’s growing energy storage footprint.
Tesla’s hiring efforts for the Texas Megafactory are hinted at by the job openings currently active on the company’s Careers website.
Tesla’s Texas Megafactory
Tesla’s Brookshire site is expected to produce 10,000 Megapacks annually, equal to 40 gigawatt hours of energy storage, similar to the Lathrop Megafactory in California. Tesla’s Careers website currently lists over 30 job openings for the site, from engineers, welders, and project managers. Each of the openings is listed for Brookshire, Texas.
The company has leased two buildings in Empire West Business Park, with over $194 million in combined property and equipment investment. Tesla’s agreement with Waller County includes a 60% property tax abatement, contingent on meeting employment benchmarks: 375 jobs by 2026, 750 by 2027, and 1,500 by 2028, as noted in a report from the Houston Business Journal. Tesla is required to employ at least 1,500 workers in the facility through the rest of the 10-year abatement period.
Tesla’s clean energy boom
City officials have stated that Tesla’s arrival marks a turning point for the Texas city, as it highlights a shift from logistics to advanced clean energy manufacturing. Ramiro Bautista from Brookshire’s economic development office, highlighted this in a comment to the Journal.
“(Tesla) has great-paying jobs. Not just that, but the advanced manufacturing (and) clean energy is coming to the area,” he said. “So it’s not just your normal logistics manufacturing. This is advanced manufacturing coming to this area, and this brings a different type of job and investment into the local economy.”
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