Tesla, the electric vehicle company of billionaire Elon Musk, has quietly built the newest virtual power plant in Japan.
The company announced on August 26 that it has been quietly installing Powerwall batteries in homes on Miyako-jima since 2021, and now has more than 300 sets of batteries installed. This is the largest commercial virtual power plant in Japan, according to Tesla's statement.
virtual power plants are a way of calling the system to take advantage of solar panels and batteries installed in private homes. People living in homes with such facilities can register to send electricity from this type of battery back to the grid in their area, helping to increase energy in situations at risk of power outages. The common grid can use that power source instead of pulling it from gas-powered power plants, which are often used when the power supply is stressed.
The virtual power plant is based on a program of local energy facilities in Miyako-jima, Miyakojima Mirai Energy Co. This facility has installed free solar panels and storage batteries for people here.
Tesla has previously had virtual power plants operating in California, the US, and Australia. The company is also starting construction on a virtual power plant in Texas, where it sees an opportunity to add a new source of power to the unreliable grid there.
In California, people with Powerwall installed at home can receive $2 per kilowatt of electricity put back into the grid.
People living in Miyako-jima who are often without power during typhoons and Powerwalls will help them save energy for their homes. A Powerwall customer said in a video released by Tesla: "During the flood, there are still lighting, the refrigerator can still be used normally."
Tesla also said it plans to install 400 Powerwall units by the end of this year and 600 units by the end of 2023. The company then plans to expand to the rest of Okinawa Prefecture, including the archipelagos between mainland Japan and Taiwan.
