In what is understood to be the biggest Tesla Powerwall 2 installation in the world, the Dominos franchise in Sydney’s West (Plumpton) has added 10 Powerwalls to their business. Tired of high power prices, they’re taking things into their own hands and investing in a renewable energy solution to save costs in the long-term.
Customers ordering pizzas will now know their pizza was cooked with battery power. Installed by Natural Solar, CEO and Founder, Chris Williams said the Company was proud to have worked on the largest commercial Tesla Powerwall installation in the world.
“We are excited Domino’s has jumped on the battery bandwagon, and are looking forward to seeing more Domino’s Franchises across Australia begin making their own ‘Tesla Powerwall 2 pizzas’.”
Buying 10 Tesla Powerwall 2 units is not a cheap proposition, with Tesla’s online estimated the cost of 10x 14kWh Powerwall batteries costs A$80,000 plus an additional A$1,050 for supporting hardware. Natural Solar don’t provide detail on their installation costs, but Tesla estimates typical installation costs range between A$1,150 to A$2,900. Including GST, this solution likely cost Dominos Plumpton around A$83,950 (inc GST). For a household, that’s a big number and the payback would be many, many years, but for a business that relies so heavily on power (for those big ovens), then this isn’t unreasonable.
The system allows the store to charge their 10 batteries from the grid overnight, when power is cheapest. This allow the store to use the power during opening hours, dramatically reducing electricity costs during peak times.
In terms of capacity, the system, which is already functioning, can store 135kWh in power, providing enough energy to power all appliances including ovens, refrigerators, freezers and lights.
Over the course of a year, this store will cook more than 90,000 pizzas and 27,000 loaves of garlic bread. As you can imagine their current power bills continue to grow and grow and this is a circuit breaker and allows them to have a one off investment that significantly reduces their energy bill.
The next natural step would be for the store to add a solar array on their roof to collect the free energy from the sun and move away from the grid completely.
“We are seeing more and more businesses Australia-wide looking for ways to add renewable energy solutions, including battery power, to their operations. In the past 12 months, commercial enquiries for Natural Solar increased by more than 1000%. We are only expecting this to grow as the battery storage revolution continues to take hold,” says Mr Williams.
Domino’s CEO Australia/New Zealand Nick Knight said the Company was pleased with the innovative approach used in the new store.
“Partnering with another Australian company Natural Solar, it excites me to see Domino’s stores and Franchisees leap at the opportunity to be at the forefront of innovation and technology to support the everyday running of their stores and businesses.
We are testing the initiative and if all goes well, we look forward to seeing more Franchisees consider renewable energy solutions in order to power their stores!
Mr Williams concluded by saying,
There is no doubt that customers who order their pizza from Domino’s Plumpton are supporting the future of renewable energy and battery power in Australia. At Natural Solar we are looking forward to the sweet taste of battery powered pizza from many more stores around the country,”
