The company told Utility Week it is in the process of finalising its distribution partners and will make an announcement on these “as soon as possible”.
In May, Tesla Motors unveiled its rechargeable lithium-ion energy-storing battery, Powerwall, which is designed to collect and store excess energy from roof-mounted solar panels and small-scale wind turbines. The company claims the technology will “wean the world off fossil fuels”.
The Powerwall is available in 10kWh form, set up for backup applications or as a 7kWh unit, optimised for daily-use applications. Both can be connected with solar or grid and both can provide backup power.
Tesla said it is working with utilities and other renewable power partners around the world to deploy storage on the grid to “improve resiliency and cleanliness of the grid as a whole”. However, details have not yet been released about any possible deals with UK energy companies.
Tesla announced in early June that it would deploy its first utility-scale energy storage batteries in the Republic of Ireland.
Since the news of Tesla broke, UK companies have been quick to release their own energy storage batteries. Tech start-up Powervault announced in mid-June that it had raised £700,000 through investment crowdfunding to install 50,000 2kWh and 4kWh home energy storage systems in the UK by 2020.
Read Utility Week’s analysis of energy storage here.