Energy
Tesla Powerpacks selected as backup system for UK park operator’s HQ
Tesla’s Powerpacks have been selected as the backup system of choice for Manchester Science Partnerships (MSP), one of the UK’s most prominent science and technology park operators. The big battery is part of the MSP’s ongoing initiative to employ and utilize advanced energy solutions.
The Tesla Powerpack system would be installed outside the MSP’s flagship headquarters, located at the Bright Building in Manchester Science Park. Apart from the Powerpacks, MSP will also be building two charging points for electric vehicles on its HQ’s premises.
The Bright Building in the UK, housing the MSP’s flagship HQ. [Credit: Manchester Science Partnerships]
According to a press release, the installation of the Powerpacks and the construction of the charging stations would help insulate the MSP from changing commercial tariffs and surging non-commodity prices. More importantly, however, the adoption of green technologies would significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the park operator’s headquarters.
Perhaps the most notable advantage of the Tesla Powerpack system for the MSP, however, would be the big battery’s capability to respond quickly in the event of a power shortage. As could be seen in the performance of the South Australia Powerpack farm near Jamestown, the system could respond to outages in less than a second — far quicker than traditional backup energy solutions like diesel generators.
The Tesla Powerpack batteries are also scalable, which would enable MSP to install additional batteries if its headquarters’ power needs increase. With enough Powerpack batteries, the park operator’s HQ in Bright Building could eventually run all day on its energy storage system alone.
MSP managing director Tom Renn stated that the company is excited about the idea of using Tesla’s Powerpacks as the headquarters’ backup power system.
“As the only UK science and technology park operator to be offering this kind of advanced energy innovation, it’s something we’re understandably very excited about. This pilot installation marks a key milestone in our advanced energy strategy. It also makes good on a commitment to invest in sustainable improvements to our campuses, signed up to as part of our green funding package with Lloyds Bank.
“We have bold plans to harness the opportunities provided by advanced energy. We envisage that within 12 months, the Bright Building will be an energy island – self-sufficient and operating without reliance on the National Grid.”
Tesla’s Powerpacks have so far proven their worth across the globe. Just recently, Tesla CEO Elon Musk responded to an islandwide blackout in Puerto Rico by pledging to expand the country’s existing solar and battery solutions 24/7 to support the country’s ravaged energy grid better. Since being hit by Hurricane Maria last year, Puerto Rico has been embroiled in a power crisis, and Tesla has been doing its part helping the island nation through its products such as the Powerpack, Powerwall home battery, and solar panels.
In South Australia, Tesla’s Powerpack farm, dubbed as the world’s biggest lithium-ion battery, continues to support the region’s power grid. The Powerpacks have proven to be so efficient; Tesla is reportedly not getting paid properly anymore since the big battery responds too fast for the Australian Energy Market Operator’s legacy billing system.
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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