On March 31, 2021, Apple announced in a press release its plans for sustainable energy changes in the coming months and years. As part of this announcement, the big tech company stated that it will ramp up its battery-based energy storage capacity in its solar farm, California Flats in Monterey County. The supplementary news came a few days later that, enabling this storage expansion, Tesla is providing many of its signature “Megapack” batteries.
According to Apple’s announcement, the new project will allow California Flats’ 130-megawatt (MW) installation to store up to 240 megawatt-hours (MWh) of energy. The company states that this amount of storage is enough to power over 7,000 homes for 24 hours.
Tesla rolled out the Megapack batteries in 2019 and has since seen success with them, with different sized batteries able to provide more storage than others. Apple will be using the 60 MW model, purchasing enough of them to power the massive solar array in northern California.
While neither company has commented yet on the purchase, the major details have already emerged. Apple traditionally works with lithium-ion batteries and hasn’t announced any plans to work on larger-scale energy-storing batteries. The partnership with Tesla then fits nicely with Apple’s needs and its future decarbonization goals.
The power these batteries will provide will put Apple on track to reach its carbon-neutrality goal. The big tech company aims to run on, and work with partners that use completely renewable energy, drastically reducing its overall carbon footprint.
Together, Apple and Tesla will now create one of the biggest battery-based energy projects in California, the United States, and throughout the rest of the world. This project comes alongside Tesla’s other battery storage ventures, like in Texas, where it plans to establish a 100 MW energy project with its Megapacks.
Changing the Industry
Tesla and Apple have historically avoided working together, which makes this new deal one to watch. As Apple uses Tesla’s Megapack batteries for energy storage, you’ll likely see more innovations and sustainable dynamics like this one emerge within the tech and energy industries.
While Apple already began its move to renewable energy sources like solar and wind, storage has been the main obstacle. Without proper energy storage, renewable energy — at least at the scale of a company like Apple with such high energy demands — is less efficient. Thus, Tesla’s batteries give Apple a way to move forward with more sustainability and energy efficiency.
The batteries show a significant way to use newer technologies for renewable energy production and storage. With them, other companies can follow in Apple’s footsteps and use battery power with renewable energy to generate electricity and provide power for their entire operations.
As more companies get on board with this dynamic, using Tesla’s batteries or similar innovations, the tech industry can become a leader for environmental change. It will become an industry that integrates naturally with the energy industry, creating clean grids to provide power for businesses and residents alike.
A New Direction
Apple’s bulk purchase of Tesla Megapack batteries will influence others in the tech and energy industries. With such a powerful team, the path to sustainability is now more clear. Renewable energy with battery-powered storage is attainable and becoming more practical. This dynamic is heating up — and for other companies to stand out, they’ll want to join the movement.