Today, Tesla Australia announced a new A$750 rebate for their home battery storage product, Powerwall. This discount is available to customers who install and register their Powerwall(s) between 11 August 2023, and 31 December 2023.
Right now, one in four households in Australia have solar panels on their roof, a strategy to reduce their energy bills, with a backdrop of rising energy prices and our nation chasing down renewable energy targets.
The natural extension of solar is to store the power from the sun as close to its point of usage to minimise loss in transmission. The closest place you can store energy is in your house, in a home battery system like Powerwall.
Powerwall is a simple concept, during daylight hours, your solar panels charge your battery, allowing you to use that power after dark, reducing your draw from the grid. There are other benefits to adding battery storage, like an insurance policy against blackouts and grid instability.
All of this comes at a cost and many, including myself, have said the price of batteries is too expensive for many to make the business case work and today’s discount certainly helps with that.
Many households make the calculation of what they spend on power today, and multiply it out linearly, to calculate their total cost of power over the life of the battery (the warranty is 10 years, but the battery will likely last much longer). It is important to remember the price of energy isn’t static and should be forecast to increase over time, along with usage costs, particularly with a transition away from gas to electric appliances.
Another consideration is the option of enrolling your Powerwall in Tesla’s Virtual Plant, known as the Tesla Energy Plan. Tesla’s Virtual Power Plant allows you to maximise your energy savings through flexible Time-of-Use rates. This helps to reduce your energy bill while increasing access to cleaner renewable energy throughout your community.
When they do draw energy from your Powerwall, they reward you with Powerwall credits, further reducing your energy bills. There is a limit of 50 Powerwall discharge cycles per year. This also extends your warranty up to 15 years, which means as long as your payback period is inside this, it’s a good deal and today’s cost reduction makes that even more appealing.
What does it cost?
Powerwall 2 is currently priced at $A12,990 but post-rebate costs A$12,150, much better than the A$20,000 (installed) I was quoted in November 2022. This now makes the Tesla Powerwall 2 as low as I can remember in years, suggesting they’re better meeting supply with demand.
Under the new rebate program, Tesla does allow you to install a single Powerwall or multiple Powerwalls. After your Powerwall(s) have been installed, connected to the internet and registered, you will be notified from the Tesla app to submit your rebate request. Once confirmed, Tesla will transfer the funds of your eligible rebate to your nominated bank account.
One question many will have is why Tesla has decided to offer the rebate. There’s no public reason stated but is likely a supply and demand control. The energy division of Tesla is certainly growing, with precious batteries making their way into Powerwall, Megapack and all seemingly in high demand.
There’s no doubt that Tesla will offer Powerwall 3 with LFP-based battery chemistry in the future, but there’s no confirmation or timeline on that at this stage.
Eligibility
To be eligible for this offer, you must:
- Install Powerwall(s) between 11 August 2023, and 31 December 2023
- Have ordered Powerwall(s) from Tesla Certified Installers
- Connect your Powerwall(s) to the Internet and register your Powerwall(s)
- Submit your rebate request in the Tesla app
Request Powerwall(s) from Tesla and be connected to a Tesla Certified Installer.
You can read the full eligibility information for the rebate on Tesla’s website.
Capabilities
A single Powerwall provides 5kW (13.5 kWh) of continuous power. You can back up any number of appliances, so long as their combined power usage does not exceed the total 5kW of continuous power per Powerwall.
Powerwall and Backup Gateway can be installed indoors or outdoors and can operate within a wide range of temperatures, from -20°C to 50°C.
While there are certainly other home battery solutions on the market, there are advantages to going with a Tesla solution, particularly if you’re already in the Tesla family. Tesla offers one of the best mobile apps for their vehicles and having a single application to manage and monitor your energy storage for the home and vehicles would be a nice place to live.
One of the recent overt-the-air software updates allows customers to configure their vehicle to only charge during sunlight hours, providing the lowest cost to charge, while sending any excess energy to the battery. If you’re not home during the day, using energy from the powerwall collected during the day, rather than the grid will again be the cheapest option.
If you do decide to proceed, the installation time will depend on the size of your system and the complexity of the electrical work required. A typical installation is completed in one full day. Depending on the complexity of the electrical work required, the power to your home will be off for a minimum of four hours and possibly longer.
Customising and Controlling Your Powerwall
You can customise your Powerwall according to your energy preferences. In the ‘Settings’ menu, you can set different control modes that change how your Powerwall is charged and discharged.
| CONTROL MODE | DESCRIPTION |
|---|---|
| Self-Powered | Minimise your carbon footprint and become more energy independent — only available when paired with solar |
| Time Based Control | Lower your utility bill and maximise your economic benefit if your energy price varies throughout the day |
| Storm Watch | Set up your Powerwall to react to significant weather events that may cause a grid outage |
| Vehicle Charging During Power Outage | Use your Powerwall and Tesla vehicles to balance your charging and energy needs during a grid outage |
