Tesla's earnings may have disappointed, but what Elon Musk said in passing could change the way our power grid works. Seriously, the implications of this are huge. Musk said, "Some will be like the Model S pack: something flat, 5 inches off the wall, wall-mounted, with a beautiful cover, an integrated bi-directionl inverter, and plug and play." Apparently a fully charged cell could power a typical home for a week. A week! Think about that. If there was a power outage on the grid, almost all of them are fixed within a week. But that's not where things get interesting.
This isn't just some off-the-cuff statement. This is actually happening. Musk said that about 30% of the Gigafactory being constructed near Reno, Nevada will be dedicated just to this function and they're in talks with utility companies to discuss terms (on a side note, it's possible the Gigafactory will be completed in 2016, rather than 2017). Anyone familiar with Nikola Tesla's headbutting that occurred between him and the utility companies of his day will get a kick out of this.
So, what is Tesla Motors, an electric car company, doing in the utility business? Musk also started SolarCity, a solar power company. His cousin is the current CEO and Musk is the Chairman of the Board. If you have SolarCity's panels on your roof, they can power your home and store excess electricity in the Tesla battery, which you can use to power your home or charge your Tesla car. It's beginning to become one big circle.
Consumers should embrace this advance in technology because it not only makes sense, it will save them money. Customers lease their roof space out to SolarCity, so there's no cost to it. Currently, you only pay a minimal amount to the utility company for power during night hours and some extra fees. Overall you still pay far less for your utilities. As long as you don't mind the aesthetic of a solar panel on your roof (which I think looks like the future and is awesome), then there's really no downside. Admittedly, this model works better in the Southwest and places that get more direct sunlight. In the future, we need to harness every bit of power we can as the population of the planet balloons.
I think we'll get a lot smarter as a collective people and start implementing more ideas such as this. Something I've always been fascinated by since I first saw it mentioned is Vertical Farming. I've used this concept to some extent in my writing because it not only makes sense, but I think it will become a necessity as an estimated 80% of the world's population will live in Urban areas by 2050. By that time I expect our abilities to increase crop yields and create these ingenious urban farming practices. Those buildings might just be powered by solar panels by SolarCity or a similar company and store power in batteries created at the Gigafactory.
I'll leave you with this: if Tesla's Gigafactory isn't a flop (which I don't think it will be), and SolarCity continues to expand, how will our power grids change and who stands to make out? Do you think this news is overstated or do you think it will truly change how we get power in this country and potentially the world? I'd love to hear your comments and thoughts!
This isn't just some off-the-cuff statement. This is actually happening. Musk said that about 30% of the Gigafactory being constructed near Reno, Nevada will be dedicated just to this function and they're in talks with utility companies to discuss terms (on a side note, it's possible the Gigafactory will be completed in 2016, rather than 2017). Anyone familiar with Nikola Tesla's headbutting that occurred between him and the utility companies of his day will get a kick out of this.
So, what is Tesla Motors, an electric car company, doing in the utility business? Musk also started SolarCity, a solar power company. His cousin is the current CEO and Musk is the Chairman of the Board. If you have SolarCity's panels on your roof, they can power your home and store excess electricity in the Tesla battery, which you can use to power your home or charge your Tesla car. It's beginning to become one big circle.
Consumers should embrace this advance in technology because it not only makes sense, it will save them money. Customers lease their roof space out to SolarCity, so there's no cost to it. Currently, you only pay a minimal amount to the utility company for power during night hours and some extra fees. Overall you still pay far less for your utilities. As long as you don't mind the aesthetic of a solar panel on your roof (which I think looks like the future and is awesome), then there's really no downside. Admittedly, this model works better in the Southwest and places that get more direct sunlight. In the future, we need to harness every bit of power we can as the population of the planet balloons.
I think we'll get a lot smarter as a collective people and start implementing more ideas such as this. Something I've always been fascinated by since I first saw it mentioned is Vertical Farming. I've used this concept to some extent in my writing because it not only makes sense, but I think it will become a necessity as an estimated 80% of the world's population will live in Urban areas by 2050. By that time I expect our abilities to increase crop yields and create these ingenious urban farming practices. Those buildings might just be powered by solar panels by SolarCity or a similar company and store power in batteries created at the Gigafactory.
I'll leave you with this: if Tesla's Gigafactory isn't a flop (which I don't think it will be), and SolarCity continues to expand, how will our power grids change and who stands to make out? Do you think this news is overstated or do you think it will truly change how we get power in this country and potentially the world? I'd love to hear your comments and thoughts!
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