In March 2021 Tesla began construction on a 100MW energy storage facility in Angleton, Texas. It wasn’t completely understood why at the time, but now it has become patently clear. Tesla has applied to Texas’ Public Utility Commission to sell electricity directly to consumers in the state.
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The town of Angleton is about 65km south of the Houston metropolis. The new structure being built there by Tesla Energy Venture, which is naturally wholly owned by Tesla, will have the capacity to power 20,000 households in the town. If the application is approved Tesla will be ready to start supplying electricity to these households by the end of this year.
This isn’t a first for the electric vehicle manufacturer. They believe their battery technology makes energy storage a lot more efficient and can therefore deliver that energy to consumers in a more cost-effective manner. Tesla has built similar facilities in other countries, like China and Australia, but haven’t started selling the electricity directly to customers (due to regulatory hurdles). They are rather working closely with local energy providers to help them with their energy storage needs.
Whether by coincidence or design, Texas may be a great place to try this new energy model. The state’s electricity grid is almost entirely controlled by ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas), which didn’t properly regulate the energy grid in the state and it was hit by major power outages at the beginning of 2021 due to very cold temperatures.
