Connect with us

News

Tesla Megapacks power on at Western Australia’s largest battery yet

Credit: Neoen

Published

on

Grid operators in Western Australia have turned on a Tesla Megapack project earlier than expected, coming under 18 months since construction began and becoming the state’s largest battery project yet.

In a press release on Tuesday, renewable provider Neoen announced that it has turned on the Collie Battery Stage 1 in Western Australia, sporting 219 MW/877 MWh of Tesla Megapacks. The project, located near the coal town of Collie on the land of the Wilman people of the Bibbulmun nation, is being operated under contract with the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), and Neoen says that Stage 1 of the project has been operational since October 1.

“We are extremely proud to have delivered the largest battery in Western Australia in record time,” said Jean-Christophe Cheylus, Neoen Australia CEO. “I would like to thank everyone who has worked tirelessly to make this happen: Western Power, Tesla and UGL as well as AEMO and the Western Australian Government. We are delighted to be contributing a storage project of this scale and duration. With over 2 GW of projects in our pipeline in WA, we are committed to continuing to play our part in the State’s energy transition.”

Tesla Energy is living up to Elon Musk’s predictions

Neoen initially announced the Collie Tesla Megapack project last June, taking under 18 months to go from groundbreaking to operation.

Advertisement

The big battery offers 197 MW of storage capacity for 4 hours, while being charged up during the day and later discharging during peak evening hours. The Collie battery also comes as a means to address risks related to the retiring of the state’s coal plants and the jump in residential and commercial rooftop solar, as identified by the AEMO.

It also marks Neoen’s first large-scale battery project in Western Australia, along with being the company’s first-ever 4-hour battery project across worldwide projects. The company also has several other projects that have gone live in Australia and Europe, and it says it currently has a total of 1,925 MW/4,709 MWh of energy storage capacity throughout Australia.

Construction on the Collie Battery Stage 2 is already under contract, and the company is aiming to add another 341 MW/1,363 MWh, expected to be operational by the last quarter of next year. In total, the Collie Battery Stages 1 and 2 will provide 560 MW/2,240 MWh of capacity, and it will be able to discharge as much as 20 percent of average demand within the South-West Interconnected System (SWIS).

Tesla currently produces its Megapack grid-scale batteries at a so-called “Megafactory” in Lathrop, California, which is expected to be able to produce 10,000 Megapacks per year at volume production. The company is also nearing completion of the construction of a Megafactory in Shanghai, China, which is expected to have the same annual production as the California plant.

Tesla Megafactory in Shanghai on track to start shipments in Q1 2025

Advertisement

Need accessories for your Tesla? Check out the Teslarati Marketplace:

What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.

Zach is a renewable energy reporter who has been covering electric vehicles since 2020. He grew up in Fremont, California, and he currently lives in Colorado. His work has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, KRON4 San Francisco, FOX31 Denver, InsideEVs, CleanTechnica, and many other publications. When he isn't covering Tesla or other EV companies, you can find him writing and performing music, drinking a good cup of coffee, or hanging out with his cats, Banks and Freddie. Reach out at zach@teslarati.com, find him on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.

Advertisement
Comments

Elon Musk

Elon Musk hits back at former Tesla employee who disagrees with pay package

Tesla is worth more than all other automotive companies combined. Which of those CEOs would you like to run Tesla?

It won’t be me.

Published

on

elon musk speaking
Credit: TED

Elon Musk gave a tough response to a former Tesla employee who spoke out on X about the structure of the CEO’s pay package, arguing that it is an overpayment and would not generate enough shareholder value.

Without a doubt, the biggest issue on the bill at this year’s Tesla Shareholder Meeting in November is that of the pay package that was proposed to CEO Elon Musk.

As the Shareholder Meeting approaches, Tesla is urging those investors to vote in support of Musk’s pay package. So far, the community has been overwhelmingly supportive of giving Musk his massive payday, which could give him $1 trillion in additional holdings if he completes each of the outlined performance tranches.

However, there are a handful of institutional and individual shareholders who have pushed back against the package, either because of its value or because they feel it does not benefit shareholders enough.

Last week, we reported that Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) advised voting against Tesla’s pay package for Musk. The firm said the payday would give Musk”extraordinarily high pay opportunities over the next ten years,” and it would “reduce the board’s ability to meaningfully adjust future pay levels.”

Advertisement

Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s $1 trillion pay package hits first adversity from proxy firm

Additionally, it called the value of the pay package “astronomical.”

On Saturday, a former Tesla employee said on X that Tesla’s proposed pay package for Musk would “barely beat inflation and it would underperform the S&P 500 considerably.” Additionally, he said:

“Sorry, Tesla, some of us (and supposedly, ISS too) simply don’t think that underperforming the S&P 500 this much is worth paying somebody 20 billion dollars worth of company value.

As a fan, I love Tesla, I want it to succeed. As a shareholder, I don’t want Tesla to over-pay for its CEO I strongly believe that the 2025 pay package proposal would over-pay for its CEO, and that other competent CEOs could grow Tesla just as much with way less political drama and cost investors much less that this proposal.”

Advertisement

Musk responded bluntly:

“Tesla is worth more than all other automotive companies combined. Which of those CEOs would you like to run Tesla? It won’t be me.”

Advertisement

It seems the worry about Musk’s potential involvement in politics still looms to many, based on the responses to Musk’s post, which frequently mention that as a downside of his last year as Tesla CEO. However, Tesla’s Board confronted that directly.

In its proxy filing after announcing the pay package, Tesla said that it had three commitments, one of which was that the company would “receive assurances that Musk’s involvement with the political sphere would wind down in a timely manner.”

Tesla Board takes firm stance on Elon Musk’s political involvement in pay package proxy

Musk’s previous pay package was approved by shareholders twice, but it never made it to the CEO because of a lawsuit with the Delaware Chancery Court brought forth by a small-time shareholder.

The response from Musk does seem to show that if this time is no different, he will inevitably step down as CEO in the coming years.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

News

Tesla rivals are lagging behind alarmingly in this crucial EV necessity

Published

on

tesla supercharger
Credit: Tesla

Tesla rivals are lagging behind the company in alarming fashion in this crucial EV necessity: charging.

Tesla has had a long-standing reputation for having the most expansive electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and even as other companies have launched their own as part of the vehicle manufacturing, nobody seems to keep pace with the EV leader.

A report from Paren exhibited this trend in Q3, showing that Tesla overwhelmingly dominated EV charging stall installations over the past three months. This data is based on U.S. installations, where Tesla has long held a dominating position as the leader in overall electric vehicle sales for many years.

In Q3, Tesla installed 1,820 new chargers in the United States, bringing its total presence to 34,328, an all-time market share of 53.2 percent of all charging stalls in the country.

What’s alarming is the fact that all other networks — ChargePoint, Red E, Electrify America, EV Connect, EVgo, Ionna, Blink, Pilot Flying J, and Rivian Adventure — only installed 841 chargers collectively in Q3. That is nearly 1,000 units behind Tesla, despite there being nine companies contributing as competitors.

Advertisement

These nine networks have 10,055 stalls in total, the data from Paren shows, accounting for 15.6 percent of the chargers in the United States.

EV charging is such a crucial part of the ownership experience, and also a part of the ongoing expansion of EV adoption in the United States.

As more people buy EVs and they become a more prominent form of passenger transportation, more chargers are needed. Many owners charge at home, but charging options in public are important to have for traveling, commuting, and for those who do not have access to residential charging.

Advertisement

Tesla ownership without home charging: Here’s how it’s done

With Tesla opening its Supercharger Network to the majority of EV brands over the past two years, things have gotten better.

It has been alarming to see so many companies involved in EV infrastructure essentially accept the gap between Tesla and themselves; not a single company has tried to up its pace to catch up to what Tesla has.

When it comes down to it, as long as there is charging, the manufacturer does not truly matter.

However, it would be nice to see Tesla have some competition in the space, but with its domination and head start in the infrastructure division, it seems the company will have this competitive advantage for years to come.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

News

Tesla updates fans on its plans for the Roadster

Earlier in 2025, Musk said Tesla would host the “most epic demo” for the Roadster in late 2025. We’re in Q4, so time is running out, but we finally got the update we’ve been waiting for from von Holzhausen on the Ride the Lightning podcast yesterday.

Published

on

Tesla Roadster and Semi at Tesla Battery Day 2020 Credit: @GuyTesla | Twitter

Tesla has finally updated fans on its plans for the Roadster after stating earlier this year it would host the “most epic demo,” showcasing the vehicle’s capabilities.

The Roadster is amongst the most highly anticipated automotive releases in the entire industry, and was set for release in 2020 initially. However, Tesla got so caught up with scaling up the Model Y and focusing on autonomy that the project took a figurative backseat.

Elon Musk teases Tesla’s “most epic demo” by end of year

In the years since its planned release, we have not seen much of the vehicle. Company executives like Elon Musk and Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen have hinted at things about it and teased us with potential release dates, but each time, it has been delayed.

Last year, Tesla planned to show something, but Musk saw what improvements had been made from the original design unveiled back in 2017 and figured the company could go a step further, only delaying the project another year.

Advertisement

But what’s another year, right?

Earlier in 2025, Musk said Tesla would host the “most epic demo” for the Roadster in late 2025. We’re in Q4, so time is running out, but we finally got the update we’ve been waiting for from von Holzhausen on the Ride the Lightning podcast yesterday.

Confirming the demo was still on for this year, he also teased some new features that the Roadster will have, like new paint options.

Von Holzhausen said:

“I’m excited to showcase the Roadster for a lot of different reasons. The wait will be worth it.”

Advertisement

Additionally, he said the capabilities of the Roadster are truly something, and they have gotten the vehicle to a point that it seems to test the “limits of physics.” Franz added that Tesla has “really gotten to a point where we are going to be achieving that standard that we set out.”

Obviously, the Roadster is not a major contributor to Tesla’s mission or to its future, which mostly leans on artificial intelligence and Robotaxi or autonomy. However, it is still a product that Tesla needs to offer, as many have put massive $250,000 downpayments on the vehicle in an attempt to purchase one.

Tesla has not yet announced a date for its demo of the Roadster, but based on Franz’s interview, it seems the company is still on track to hold that by the end of the year.

The full episode with Franz von Holzhausen on the Ride the Lightning podcast is available here.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending