Several cities in the state of South Australia ran out of electricity in September 2016 because of a storm that damaged part of the local infrastructure. Although to a lesser extent, other blackouts occurred after that. Growing demand is the main cause. The high heat in the region during the beginning of 2017 made consumption increase considerably. To bring balance to the system, the local government announced a fund worth approximately $115 million to finance the implementation of renewable energy projects in the region, the most commonly used type in South Australia. Tesla appeared among the companies interested in providing energy storage equipment to the Neoen Hornsdale wind farm. At the time, Lyndon Rive, then vice president of energy products at Tesla, said the company could install a storage system in the region in up to 100 days. Shortly thereafter, a Silicon Valley businessman asked Elon Musk on Twitter whether the company was serious about the deadline or not. Here’s the answer: “Tesla will install the system and put it to work within 100 days after signing the contract or it will be free. That serious enough for you?” The total amount is estimated at $50 million.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 10, 2017 Tesla signed the contract on September 29. Just over 50 days later, the equipment was already installed. The battery – in fact, a Powerpack system of lithium-ion batteries – has 100 megawatts of capacity. It is the largest in the world focused on this purpose, being able to serve about 30 thousand houses in the region, practically the same amount of residences that were without energy in the blackout of 2016. The operation should begin on December 1. The plan is to make the system provide power during peak times. Before that, the battery needs to undergo tests and refinements to meet requirements established by AEMO, the agency that regulates the distribution of energy in the region. So, what do you think about this? Simply share your views and thoughts in the comment section below.
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