According to the company’s statement, Tesla has been quietly installing its Powerwall batteries at homes on the island of Miyako-jima since 2021 and now has over 300 installed.
“In addition, Powerwall installation will be carried out by Nextems Co., Ltd, a Tesla Powerwall certified sales and construction company, and Powerwall aggregation and utilization as a VPP will also be carried out by Nextems,” Tesla added.
Solar panels and batteries in private homes are used as virtual power plants. Residents with those setups can send extra power into their area’s electrical grid to give it an extra boost in times of blackouts. Power grids can use renewable energy from solar plants instead of gas-fired power plants when the power supply is stressed.
A virtual power plant has been constructed based on a utility program at Miyakojima Mirai Energy Co in Miyako-jima, Japan that offers free assemblies of solar panels and storage batteries.
With virtual power plants already operating in California and Australia, Tesla is working on getting one off the ground in Texas. This is after spotting an opportunity to add a more reliable source of power to a notoriously unreliable grid, a critical move during emergencies or periods of high demand. Californians with Powerwalls installed in their homes can earn $2 for every kilowatt-hour fed back into the grid when it’s under stress.
On Miyako-jima, power blackouts are common during typhoons, and the Powerwalls help keep homes’ lights and appliances on.
It is anticipated that the company will install 400 units by the end of this year, and 600 in 2023. Tesla intends to expand throughout Okinawa prefecture, which consists of a constellation of islands stretching between the Japanese mainland and Taiwan in the near future.