Energy
Tesla’s big battery in Australia is starting an energy storage movement
Tesla’s big battery in South Australia, officially known as the Hornsdale Power Reserve, has been supporting the region’s beleaguered energy grid since it went online last year. Over the past months, the Powerpack installation has been proving that large-scale battery storage solutions could be preferable alternatives to fossil fuel-powered backup plants.
Almost two years ago, SA experienced a state-wide blackout that highlighted the region’s need for a facility that can provide backup to the grid. A Twitter conversation between two billionaires, Australian software pioneer Michael Cannon-Brookes and Tesla founder Elon Musk, ultimately started the initiative that would eventually become the massive Powerpack farm. Musk even wagered that Tesla could complete the 100MW/129MWh facility in 100 days or it would be free.
The timeline was ambitious, and unsurprisingly, it attracted a slew of critics, some of whom claimed that batteries could not be built that big or that quick. In the same month as Elon Musk and Michael Cannon-Brookes’ conversation on Twitter, for example, the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) issued a report suggesting that the maximum size of a utility-scale lithium-ion battery would be 1MW. The report was published not long after then-AEMO chairman Tony Marxsen stated that utility-scale batteries were about 10 to 20 years away from providing meaningful contributions to the grid. The Minerals Council of Australia, the country’s primary coal lobby, also suggested that a large-scale battery installation would take at least one year to design and two years to build.
Tesla completed the 100MW/129MWh Powerpack farm within Elon Musk’s ambitious timeline, six months after the “billionaire tweets” and just 62 days after Telsa signed the connection agreement with the market operator and network owner. Even as the battery started its operations, though, the facility still attracted a notable number of critics. Prime minister Scott Morrison ridiculed the Hornsdale Power Reserve, comparing it to tourist attractions such as the Big Banana in New South Wales. Resources Minister Matt Canavan also dubbed the big battery as the “Kim Kardashian” of the energy market.
Amidst the skepticism, the SA big battery has proven its worth many times over. Even before its official launch, the Powerpack farm was called into action, injecting 70MW of stored wind energy into the market. Two weeks after it was officially opened, it stepped in when a unit at Loy Yang coal generator in Victoria tripped. Just last month, twin lightning strikes caused widespread outages in three states, and the Queensland and South Australia grids had to be islanded. Queensland’s backup hydro plants and coal generators struggled to respond to the unexpected event, while South Australia, supported by the Tesla Powerpack farm, emerged from the incident unscathed.
The Hornsdale Power Reserve and its success so far has encouraged a series of similar battery storage projects in Australia. The Ganawarra battery, a Tesla installation paired directly with a massive solar farm, is set to start operations soon. Next to the Wattle Point wind farm, the Dalrymple North battery is expected to go online soon as well. Other battery storage installations are also set to be launched in Ballarat, Whyalla, and in Queensland. And these are just large-scale battery solutions. Initiatives such as the South Australia Virtual Power Plant, which would dwarf than the Hornsdale Power Reserve when completed, have also been given the green light.
It won’t be an overstatement to say that the Tesla big battery has become a project, possibly even the project, which ultimately proved that battery storage is an ideal alternative for fossil fuel-powered backup plants. This was emphasized earlier this month by Tesla CTO JB Straubel, who noted that the improvements in battery storage are starting to affect the market for traditional fossil fuel-powered peaker plants. In an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Straubel stated that even at this point, large battery installations are “already outcompeting natural gas peaker plants.”
Tesla Energy usually takes a backseat compared to the company’s electric car business in terms of news coverage, but its progress in battery storage has been notable. In the first six months of 2018 alone, Tesla’s deployment of stationary batteries, which are designed to supply power to residential homes, businesses, and power grids, surged 450%. During the 2018 Annual Shareholder Meeting, Elon Musk also announced that it is aiming to hit a cost of $100 per kWh at the pack level. Considering its recent growth and the success of high-profile projects like the Hornsdale Power Reserve, it won’t be surprising if Tesla Energy eventually catches up and surpasses Tesla’s electric car business in size.
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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