A newly discovered permit application filing from March 25 indicates that Tesla is planning on building an up to 53-acre on-site battery energy storage system (BESS), along with a switchyard, at its Gigafactory in Austin, Texas (via @SawyerMerritt).
Tesla enthusiast and sleuth Sawyer Merritt, who uncovered the permit filing, wagers that Tesla would use its own Megapacks for a BESS at Giga Texas.
NEWS: According to a new permit application filing made on March 25, 2022, @Tesla is looking to build an up to 53 acre Battery energy storage system and a switchyard at their Giga Texas factory.
I imagine Tesla would use their own Megapacks for this BESS. pic.twitter.com/NfXaY7Nf79
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) March 26, 2022
The Megapack is a commercial-grade energy storage solution from Tesla that is typically deployed to solar farms, energy storage sites, and other large-scale electricity projects.
Global clean energy provider TagEnergy started construction on a Megapack-based BESS in the U.K last week, and three new Megapack-backed installations were announced by Edify in Australia earlier this week.
A BESS at Gigafactory Austin would not only allow Tesla to decrease the facility’s reliance on the Texas power grid but also possibly help support it.
In November 2021, Tesla was approved to sell electricity in Texas, and Tesla’s residential-grade Powerwalls and solar roof constitute the centerpiece of a large-scale sustainable neighborhood in Austin.
With Giga Berlin having recently gone online, Tesla is now gearing up to start operations at its Austin Gigafactory. On Friday, Tesla started sending out invites to its upcoming grand opening party at Giga Texas, officially known as ‘Cyber Rodeo’.
