Tesla Motors has announced innovative battery systems to power homes and businesses as part of its ambitious plan to “help wean the world off fossil fuels”.
In an event late Thursday in California that was live streamed online, Silicon Valley electric-vehicle automaker’s CEO Elon Musk revealed the so-called Tesla Powerwall, a fridge-size rechargeable lithium-ion battery intended to be mounted in a garage or a house.
"The issue with existing batteries is that they suck. They're expensive, they're unreliable, they're sort of stinky, ugly, and bad in every way,” he said.
He called the company’s new solution as the "missing piece” which allows homes, business and utilities to smartly manage and diversify their energy needs.
Besides accumulating solar power and offering the security of an emergency backup, the cutting-edge technology is intended to provide flexible "load shifting," by charging from the grid during off-peak periods when low rates apply and discharging during peak hours to help both the consumer and the national grid.
The software-controlled “automated, compact and simple” Tesla Powerwall comes in two versions: a 7 kilowatt-hour pack for $3,000 and a 10 kilowatt-hour pack for $3,500.
There will also be a battery suite for businesses and for utilities called Powerpacks, both operating on a larger scale than the Powerwall home battery.
The company plans to start deliveries in the US "in late summer”.
