Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, this week announced that the long-awaited energy storage system now called “Powerwall 2 Plus” went into production around November last year. The Tesla CEO made the announcement during a conference call with Electrek following Tesla’s Q1 2021 financial results.
The initial Powerwall 2 was introduced back in 2016, and it hasn’t been updated much since its release. Tesla has over the years tweaked the storage system’s energy capacity to 13.5 kWh, and the weight has gone down from 122 kg (269 lbs) to 114 kg (251.3 lbs). The price was also increased a few times as Tesla couldn’t keep up with the demand.
“It’s actually ‘Powerwall 2 Plus’, if you will. The plus refers to a higher peak power capability. So basically, all Powerwalls made since roughly November of last year have a lot more peak power capability than the specification on the website. They have about twice the power capability roughly,” Musk said.
Tesla also made hardware changes to improve the power capacity in more recent Powerwall 2 battery units since the CEO mentioned that the extent of the power increase is dependent “on the production date.”
The power output (of the Powerwall Plus 2) can increase by over 50% in ambient temperature
Elon Musk, Tesla CEO
“Powerwall 2 peak and steady power capability is better than advertised. Now that we have lots of operational data, Tesla can unlock higher capabilities for free via software update next month. Depending on production date, power increase power may be >50% at 30C ambient temp,” says Musk.
Musk also announced that Tesla’s recently launched solar inverter, which was offered with 3.8 kW and 7.6 kW power outputs, has also been updated for more than 10 kW power output.
“Effectively, almost every house, therefore, looks the same electrically instead of being a unique work of art and requiring exceptional ability to rewire the main panel. So this is extremely important for scalability. It’s the only way to do it, really. And this also means that every solar and Powerwall installation at a house, or whatever the case may be, will be its own utility,” Musk continued.
