Connect with us

News

More details of Tesla Giga Texas’ Megapack installation teased

Credit: Tesla

Published

on

Details of Tesla’s Megapack installation at Gigafactory Texas have been revealed in documents related to the plant. Among these is a filing receipt about the installation, which included sections on the number of Megapack batteries that will be used, as well as the system’s capacity.

Longtime Tesla Giga Texas watcher Joe Tegtmeyer shared a copy of the document from the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA). The Tesla enthusiast, who has been taking drone videos of Tesla’s Texas sites for some time now, has also been following the progress of the buildout of the Gigafactory’s battery storage system for the past months.

As noted in the Texas LCRA document, the battery installation will be comprised of 68 Megapack battery units that are rated at approximately 2 MW each. The delivery voltage of the system is listed as 345 kV in the document. Other key details about the upcoming battery installation were also listed in the document.

“The Plant is a Battery Energy Storage System (“BESS”) facility with one Point of Interconnection to the grid. The Plant nameplate rating will be approximately 163.2-MVA of AC power (with a maximum real power rating of 131.05-MW) at the inverter 480VAC terminals (low voltage),” the document read.

Advertisement
Credit: Tesla

A look at the Tesla Megapack order page shows that 1.9 MW of power and 3.9 MWh of energy is possible with the battery’s 2-hour duration. Shifting to a 4-hour Megapack duration shifts the battery’s power to 1 MW. Considering the contents of the LCRA document, it would appear that Tesla will be using the battery’s 2-hour setup for Giga Texas’ battery storage system.

Adjusting the quantity of the Megapack in the battery’s order page to 68 units shows that the power of the system would be 131 MW, and its energy would be at 262.1 MWh. This would make the installation larger than the Hornsdale Power Reserve, one of Tesla’s most famous battery installations that was once considered the largest in the world. For context, the Hornsdale battery, which was composed of Tesla Powerpack units, featured 100 MW of power and 129 MWh of energy when it was installed in 2017.

Watch Joe Tegtmeyer’s  video on Giga Texas’ Megapack farm in the video below.

The Teslarati team would appreciate hearing from you. If you have any tips, contact me at maria@teslarati.com or via Twitter @Writer_01001101.

Advertisement

Maria--aka "M"-- is an experienced writer and book editor. She's written about several topics including health, tech, and politics. As a book editor, she's worked with authors who write Sci-Fi, Romance, and Dark Fantasy. M loves hearing from TESLARATI readers. If you have any tips or article ideas, contact her at maria@teslarati.com or via X, @Writer_01001101.

Advertisement
Comments

Elon Musk

Tesla Full Self-Driving’s newest behavior is the perfect answer to aggressive cars

According to a recent video, it now appears the suite will automatically pull over if there is a tailgater on your bumper, the most ideal solution for when a driver is riding your bumper.

Published

on

Credit: Tesla

Tesla Full Self-Driving appears to have a new behavior that is the perfect answer to aggressive drivers.

According to a recent video, it now appears the suite will automatically pull over if there is a tailgater on your bumper, the most ideal solution for when a driver is riding your bumper.

With FSD’s constantly-changing Speed Profiles, it seems as if this solution could help eliminate the need to tinker with driving modes from the person in the driver’s seat. This tends to be one of my biggest complaints from FSD at times.

A video posted on X shows a Tesla on Full Self-Driving pulling over to the shoulder on windy, wet roads after another car seemed to be following it quite aggressively. The car looks to have automatically sensed that the vehicle behind it was in a bit of a hurry, so FSD determined that pulling over and letting it by was the best idea:

Advertisement

Advertisement

We can see from the clip that there was no human intervention to pull over to the side, as the driver’s hands are stationary and never interfere with the turn signal stalk.

This can be used to override some of the decisions FSD makes, and is a great way to get things back on track if the semi-autonomous functionality tries to do something that is either unneeded or not included in the routing on the in-car Nav.

FSD tends to move over for faster traffic on the interstate when there are multiple lanes. On two-lane highways, it will pass slower cars using the left lane. When faster traffic is behind a Tesla on FSD, the vehicle will move back over to the right lane, the correct behavior in a scenario like this.

Perhaps one of my biggest complaints at times with Full Self-Driving, especially from version to version, is how much tinkering Tesla does with Speed Profiles. One minute, they’re suitable for driving on local roads, the next, they’re either too fast or too slow.

Advertisement

When they are too slow, most of us just shift up into a faster setting, but at times, even that’s not enough, see below:

Advertisement

There are times when it feels like it would be suitable for the car to just pull over and let the vehicle that is traveling behind pass. This, at least up until this point, it appears, was something that required human intervention.

Now, it looks like Tesla is trying to get FSD to a point where it just knows that it should probably get out of the way.

Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Tesla Megapack powers $1.1B AI data center project in Brazil

By integrating Tesla’s Megapack systems, the facility will function not only as a major power consumer but also as a grid-supporting asset.

Published

on

Credit: Tesla

Tesla’s Megapack battery systems will be deployed as part of a 400MW AI data center campus in Uberlândia, Brazil. The initiative is described as one of Latin America’s largest AI infrastructure projects.

The project is being led by RT-One, which confirmed that the facility will integrate Tesla Megapack battery energy storage systems (BESS) as part of a broader industrial alliance that includes Hitachi Energy, Siemens, ABB, HIMOINSA, and Schneider Electric. The project is backed by more than R$6 billion (approximately $1.1 billion) in private capital.

According to RT-One, the data center is designed to operate on 100% renewable energy while also reinforcing regional grid stability.

“Brazil generates abundant energy, particularly from renewable sources such as solar and wind. However, high renewable penetration can create grid stability challenges,” RT-One President Fernando Palamone noted in a post on LinkedIn. “Managing this imbalance is one of the country’s growing infrastructure priorities.”

Advertisement

By integrating Tesla’s Megapack systems, the facility will function not only as a major power consumer but also as a grid-supporting asset.

“The facility will be capable of absorbing excess electricity when supply is high and providing stabilization services when the grid requires additional support. This approach enhances resilience, improves reliability, and contributes to a more efficient use of renewable generation,” Palamone added.

The model mirrors approaches used in energy-intensive regions such as California and Texas, where large battery systems help manage fluctuations tied to renewable energy generation.

The RT-One President recently visited Tesla’s Megafactory in Lathrop, California, where Megapacks are produced, as part of establishing the partnership. He thanked the Tesla team, including Marcel Dall Pai, Nicholas Reale, and Sean Jones, for supporting the collaboration in his LinkedIn post.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Starlink powers Europe’s first satellite-to-phone service with O2 partnership

The service initially supports text messaging along with apps such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Google Maps and weather tools.

Published

on

Credit: SpaceX

Starlink is now powering Europe’s first commercial satellite-to-smartphone service, as Virgin Media O2 launches a space-based mobile data offering across the UK.

The new O2 Satellite service uses Starlink’s low-Earth orbit network to connect regular smartphones in areas without terrestrial coverage, expanding O2’s reach from 89% to 95% of Britain’s landmass.

Under the rollout, compatible Samsung devices automatically connect to Starlink satellites when users move beyond traditional mobile coverage, according to Reuters.

The service initially supports text messaging along with apps such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Google Maps and weather tools. O2 is pricing the add-on at £3 per month.

Advertisement

By leveraging Starlink’s satellite infrastructure, O2 can deliver connectivity in remote and rural regions without building additional ground towers. The move represents another step in Starlink’s push beyond fixed broadband and into direct-to-device mobile services.

Virgin Media O2 chief executive Lutz Schuler shared his thoughts about the Starlink partnership. “By launching O2 Satellite, we’ve become the first operator in Europe to launch a space-based mobile data service that, overnight, has brought new mobile coverage to an area around two-thirds the size of Wales for the first time,” he said.

Satellite-based mobile connectivity is gaining traction globally. In the U.S., T-Mobile has launched a similar satellite-to-cell offering. Meanwhile, Vodafone has conducted satellite video call tests through its partnership with AST SpaceMobile last year.

For Starlink, the O2 agreement highlights how its network is increasingly being integrated into national telecom systems, enabling standard smartphones to connect directly to satellites without specialized hardware.

Advertisement
Continue Reading