Tesla deployed 419 MWh of electricity battery storage in the second quarter, an increase of 61% compared from the first quarter, but just a 1% increase over deployments made in Q2 2019, the company has said.
Elon Musk and other Tesla executives told analysts in a July 22 earnings call that Tesla is growing production of its batteries "as fast as we can," but for now has left open the prospects of manufacturing batteries at the new $1 billion facility announced July 22 for Austin, Texas.
In its Q2 "update," the company said it "recently launched and is still ramping" its trademark Megapack battery production that it said "generated a profit for the first time in Q2."
Battery deployments in the quarter were driven by increases in both its Powerwall and Megapack products, the company said.
The trademark Powerwall battery is used primarily in the home and is "paired" with rooftop solar and is used to recharge appliances. The Megapack battery is deployed for grid use.
According to Tesla's data, storage deployment hit a peak in the fourth quarter of 2019, when it says it installed 530 MWh of its Megapack batteries.
Tesla said it has a real-time energy trading platform it calls Autobidder that is "designed to maximize energy revenue for our utility-scale batteries." It said the platform has been launched in Europe and is "an important part" of its storage strategy,
Asked during the earnings call how big the energy sector is to Tesla, Musk said, "It is bigger than automotive."
Musk said the mission of Tesla is to "accelerate sustainable energy." He said batteries and solar "will both be enormous, and they kind of have to be in order for us to have a sustainable future."
Solar
Tesla reported in its update that it had 27 MW of "solar deployed" in Q2 2020, which was down 23% compared to Q1 2020, and down 7% compared to Q2 2019.
The company said that In Q4 2019 it had 54 MW of solar deployed, without saying what type of solar it had deployed.
According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, residential rooftop solar installations were the hardest hit segment of the US solar installation business by the coronavirus pandemic.
Musk told analysts, however, that Tesla "recently made home retrofit solar even more affordable in the US, while also offering an increased efficiency panel. At $1.49/watt, the average Tesla solar system is now one-third less expensive than the industry," he said.
Musk claimed Tesla's solar roof installations "roughly tripled in Q2 compared to Q1," and that the company "continues to expand its installation team to increase the deployment rate.
Electric vehicles
Additionally, Tesla reported 90,891 total electric vehicle deliveries in the second quarter, a 3% increase from Q1 2020, but a 5% decline from deliveries in Q2 2019. Its total production of all four types of EVs came to 82,272 units in Q2, a 20% decline compared with sales in Q1 2020, and a decline of 5% compared with Q2 2019.
The company's Model 3 and Model Y are its hottest selling vehicles, with deliveries of both totaling 80,277 in Q2. This compared with 10,614 deliveries of its Models S and Model X in Q2.
Tesla told analysts that it will continue to build capacity for it Model Y at factories in Berlin and Shanghai and "remains on track to start deliveries of these vehicles from both locations in 2021."
Musk told analysts that Tesla will be manufacturing its new Cybertruck and the Tesla Semi at its new site in Austin. As well, he said, "We'll be doing Model 3 and Y for the eastern half of North America" in Austin.
\Tesla will "continue to grow in California," and to produce there Model S and Model X for worldwide consumption and the Model 3 and Model Y for the western half of North America, he said.
Tesla reported that in Q2 it installed 2,035 supercharger stations, an increase of 6% from Q1 and up 28% compared with Q2 2019. It said it Installed 18,100 supercharger connectors in Q2 2020, which it said was an increase of 6% over Q1 2020 and up 30% compared to Q2 2019.
The company said it "knows from its customers that range is an all-important attribute for those looking to switch from their combustion engine vehicle to an EV."
Tesla said it recently announced an updated Model S "with an EPA-tested range of 402 miles, making it the first production EV in history to break the 400-mile range threshold."
