A major coal plant shutdown unexpectedly and without a warning. But Tesla’s ion batteries were there to jump in and save the day. It was a race against the clock when the Tesla energy team compensated for the unexpected power trip of a major coal plant in Australia. The world record holding Tesla lithium-ion battery reacted in fractions of a second, getting online before the coal plant’s backup plant even completed its startup functions.
The Loy Yang Power Station tripped without any warning causing a sudden loss of 560 MW of power at almost 2 am on Thursday. But the 100 MW Tesla battery was easily able to pick up the slack quickly within seconds and resupplied the energy so quickly that even the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) failed to successfully record data from the power switch. The Tesla’s battery superhero antics pleased and surprised Australian government because the battery went above and beyond than what it was expected to do.
Some of the Tesla’s best work centers around creating a sustainable future and the products and vehicles coming out of the Tesla Labs have proven their efficiency and functionality. The recent Australia power grid mishap, for example, caused a major concern in most cases and a mass shortage across the region. The frustration with those shortages is exactly what brought Musk and Tesla to Australia in the first place. The lithium-ion battery was able to pick up the energy slack and supply energy to the entire grid without hesitation.
Just this year, Elon Musk and his Tesla team installed a 100-300 MW battery in South Australia to combat Australia’s current energy crisis. In March, the billionaire Tesla founder offered to install the super battery in 100 days. By December, the battery was installed for free. The battery is designed to provide a back up for 30,000 homes in Australia in case of a major electrical blackout. It is installed at the Neoen’s Hornsdale windfarm, north of Adelaide. The Tesla battery farm stores masses of energy from the renewable energy (solar & wind) and sends it out to the grid when the usage is high.
“While others are just talking, we are delivering our energy plan, making South Australia more self-sufficient, and providing back up power and more affordable energy for South Australians this summer. The world’s largest lithium-ion battery will be an important part of our energy mix, and it sends the clearest message that South Australia will be a leading renewable energy with battery storage.”