Tesla Offers Most Affordable Residential Power Storage, Says ARK Invest

Featured Image Credit: Tesla

Tesla Energy offers the most affordable residential power storage units in the market on a cost per kilowatt-hour basis, according to an analysis from financial firm ARK Invest. With this in mind, it appears that the Tesla Powerwall has more than what it takes to become a very competitive product in the residential market.

The Tesla Powerwall is not the only home battery storage unit available today. However, it stands apart from the competition since it is being produced by Tesla, which has built its business on intensive battery tech and development. Tesla’s battery roots run deep, as evidenced by co-founderJB Straubel already working on battery tech even before he joined the company.

ARK’s data evaluated the installed residential battery storage pricing during the first quarter of 2020. As could be seen in ARK’s graph, the Tesla Powerwall may not be the cheapest home battery per se, but it is the most affordable at a cost per kilowatt-hour basis. This means that in the market today, there are very few home batteries that can hold a candle to the Powerwall’s bang-for-the-buck value.

Tesla appears to offer the least expensive residential storage products on the market. Analyst @GeorgeOfARK has more: https://t.co/Hr40flI9tJ pic.twitter.com/9K0sOYyuwX

— ARK Invest (@ARKInvest) June 9, 2020

There are a variety of reasons behind this, though ARK noted that Tesla has a particularly unique advantage in the energy storage market. Being a company that produces both EVs and stationary storage devices, Tesla could divert excess capacity in its vehicle battery cells to those in its energy storage products. This allows the company to match its battery production with demand for its products.

But the Powerwall’s advantage does not stop there. Being from Tesla, the Powerwall also has the advantage of being built using the company’s vertically-integrated model, allowing it to receive over-the-air software updates like the Model S, 3, X, and Y. Other key features such as Storm Watch, which automatically charges batteries in advance of severe weather conditions, further make the Powerwall a compelling product for the residential market.

Tesla’s in-house processes for its software and hardware has built a formidable lineup of products on both the electric vehicle and energy storage market. While the Powerwall may be the most understated among Tesla Energy’s products due to its size, it has the potential to take over a significant size of the residential segment. And if ARK’s data is any indication, it appears that Tesla’s bet on battery improvements, as well as its efforts to make its products as accessible to consumers as possible, is coming to fruition.