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Tesla Gigafactory 1 Production Increase Translates To 81% More Powerwall Deployments

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Published on July 26th, 2019 |

by Kyle Field

Tesla Gigafactory 1 Production Increase Translates To 81% More Powerwall Deployments

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July 26th, 2019 by Kyle Field

Image courtesy Tesla

Tesla’s energy business (Tesla Energy) often ends up playing second fiddle to the admittedly more exciting automotive business, but that doesn’t mean it’s not growing. In Q2, Tesla increased deployments of its 13.5 kWh Powerwall 81%, according to the Q2 2019 investor letter, to a record 415MWh.

Tesla said in the letter that the sharp increase in Powerwall deployments means they have now been installed at more than 50,000 sites around the world. A Tesla spokesperson confirmed that Powerpack installations also increased in Q2 in parallel to the increase in Powerwall deployments.

The update is some of the first tangible evidence we have that the company is getting better at balancing battery cell production at its Sparks, Nevada Gigafactory 1 with downstream demand in both its automotive and energy businesses. The automotive side of the business continues to grow like gangbusters, nearly doubling the existing deployed fleet every year, and now Tesla Energy is getting in on a bigger piece of the Gigafactory 1 pie.

It is this exponential growth that makes the cell production and downstream demand such a challenge. The company has increased its battery cell production capacity at Gigafactory 1 to around 28 gigawatt-hours, according to CEO Elon Musk on the Q2 2019 earnings call. That figure has the factory bumping up against its original target production capacity of 35GWh a year. (The target has risen much higher since then.)

Tesla Grohmann Automation equipment. Image courtesy Tesla

GF1 production expansion came not only from Panasonic’s side of the business in cell production, but also at the module level, where a new module line designed by Tesla Grohmann Automation “enabled a step change in energy storage production.”

The solar side of Tesla’s Energy business continues to dwindle, with solar retrofit deployments of traditional solar panel systems declining to 29MW in Q2. Tesla made some headway in streamlining the sales process for its energy products in parallel to automotive sales, but the company has yet to deliver on the promise of scaled production and adoption of solar.

The Solar Roof is perhaps the ultimate golden egg for Tesla. Some of us believe (and some don’t) that the Lego-esque snap-together roof replacement that just happens to generate solar energy is the future of rooftops everywhere. Deployments of the Solar Roof are growing, according to reports from numerous Tesla employees, but we have yet to see concrete financials from the company in support of this progress. Also, there is no apparent solution underway for dropping sales of rooftop solar panel systems. Presumably, Tesla needs to find more ways to capitalize on the synergies between its automotive business and its solar power system business.

Do you have any other thoughts on the Tesla Energy portions of this technology company out of Silicon Valley?

If you’re in the market for a Tesla, feel free to use my Tesla Referral code for your purchase: http://ts.la/kyle623 . Doing so gives the buyer (that would be you) and me 1,000 miles of free Supercharging credit and allows us to cover Tesla even better in the future.

About the Author

Kyle Field I'm a tech geek passionately in search of actionable ways to reduce the negative impact my life has on the planet, save money and reduce stress. Live intentionally, make conscious decisions, love more, act responsibly, play. The more you know, the less you need. TSLA investor.

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Friday Morning Auto News, Jul 26, 2019

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Wildcat Discovery, InoBat to build electric car battery line in Slovakia – Reuters: Slovak group InoBat and U.S. energy tech firm Wildcat Discovery Technologies will build a 100 million euro ($111 million) automotive battery production line in …
Woes at Maruti Suzuki underscore troubles in India’s car industry – FT: India’s largest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki, has recorded a 27.3 per cent drop in net profits in the April to June quarter, compared to the same period last …
Ford will ax Ka+ minicar in Europe – Automotive News: PSA Group’s Opel-Vauxhall unit has said it will drop its Karl and Adam minicars. PSA has also hinted that the Peugeot 108 and Citroen C1 might be …
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Maruti Suzuki India June-quarter profit dives, but tops estimates – Reuters: IndiaMaruti Suzuki India Ltd on Friday posted a 27.3% plunge in its first-quarter net profit amid an industry-wide slowdown in demand, but beat market expectations.
Ford, BMW, VW, Honda reach compromise with California on emissions – Automotive News: The automakers reached an agreement on fuel efficiency rules with California, which accounts for 12 percent of U.S. vehicle sales.
China’s CATL to start battery storage business in Japan with Next Energy – Reuters: China’s electric vehicle battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL) said it will start offering products to homes and plants in …
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French carmaker Renault cuts 2019 revenue outlook – Reuters: French carmaker Renault on Friday cut its 2019 revenue outlook, on the back of falling demand and tough conditions within the automotive industry.
China will not set blanket winter output cuts for heavy industry – Reuters: China’s central government will not set overall output restrictions on heavy industry for the coming winter, but will direct local governments to set limits based on manufacturers’ emissions, the environment ministry said on Friday.
Renault Lowers Sales Outlook as Europe Auto Downturn Takes Hold – Bloomberg: Renault SA lowered its outlook for full-year sales as the French carmaker grapples with a downturn in the European car market and dismal results from partner …
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Prototype Sumitomo tires recover energy as they roll

There's wind power, solar power, and—tire power.

Sumitomo Rubber is developing a new tire that can restore energy to a car as it drives down the road.

The energy recaptures static electricity generated when the tires deform and return to their original shape as they roll down the road.

Recovering energy from a portion of tire rolling resistance works somewhat like regenerative braking, improving efficiency recovering a portion of the energy that would otherwise be lost while driving.

Sumitomo electricity-generating tire concept

So far, the small devices that Sumitomo attaches to the inside of the tire's tread recaptures only a small amount of energy, enough to keep the tire-pressure-monitor sensors charged, for example.

Eventually the savings could be bigger. In 2010, when Michelin was introducing a new line of low rolling-resistance tires for electric cars and hybrids, the company estimated that in an electric car up to 30 percent of the energy required to power the car down the road went to overcoming rolling resistance. Another third was to overcome wind resistance, and a smaller portion to mechanical friction. The rest come from waste heat in the motors, power electronics, and other smaller drains.

The Sumitomo energy “harvesters” use frictional charging, or the triboelectric effect. They use two oppositely charged electrodes sitting parallel with the inside surface of the tire's tread. When the electrodes make contact as the tire rotates it captures static electricity and transmits it to a wire through a conductive layer.

Goodyear BH03 concept tire

Sumitomo is not the first tire company working on energy recovery. And at the 2015 Geneva auto show, Goodyear rolled out a set of concept tires called the BH03 that recovered energy.

Neither tire manufacturer has announced when or if their new tire energy recovery systems may make it to production.

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