Tesla said the batteries will be in place and running by the end of the year, becoming “the largest lithium ion battery storage project in the world”. On completion in Los Angeles, the energy arm of Tesla, still best known for its cars, said it would hold enough electricity to power 2,500 households for a day or charge 1,000 of its sleek vehicles.
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Southern California Edison spokesman Paul Griffo told CNBC the Powerpack will charge whenever excess energy is on the grid (often during off-peak hours) and then deliver it later when it’s needed. The new project was mandated by the California Public Utilities Commission and will be developed in close collaboration with utilities company Southern California Edison.
Last October, a catastrophic rupture in the Aliso Canyon natural gas reservoir caused a methane gas spill that displaced more than 8,000 Californians and released an unprecedented 1.6 million pounds of methane into the atmosphere.
Now, it has caught a big fish – Southern California Edison – the largest subsidiary of Edison International (NYSE:EIX) and the main utility company in Southern California.
The Aliso Canyon facility had been feeding the network of natural gas “peaker” power plants in the Los Angeles basin. If that gap is real, and no one can close it, this relatively small contract might be the first step towards a smart grid ruled by Elon Musk’s little auto company.
Electric vehicle company Tesla has beat several firms in the running for a bid to build a storage facility in California. The Texas methane leak occurred when a natural gas storage facility collapsed, but a subsequent fire turned much of the escaping methane into carbon dioxide as it burned up.
Tesla’s newest project could prevent recurring blackouts during peak hours. In just three months it will produce all of the lithium-ion cells required for the Powerpacks. Batteries were the main target, as not like traditional generators of electricity, they do not need any gas or water pipelines, and they could be deployed quickly.
The attempt to build the battery comes after Tesla was contracted by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for the objective.
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Tesla has also announced it will begin building its own microgrids, which can act as small, independent power generation and storage facilities for cities, corporate campuses, military bases or remote locations such as islands.
