Tesla has just released its latest earnings report, and the results indicate that Elon Musk’s bets on energy storage and solar are starting to pay off.
The storage business was the star of the company’s power games in the fourth quarter, with quarterly year-on-year growth approaching 200%. As the company stated in its presentation to shareholders, “[energy] installations grew significantly from 2019 to 2020. For the first time, our battery’s total installations exceeded 3 GWh in a single year, an 83% increase over the previous year.
The solar arrays also had their day in the sun. For the year, solar power installations increased to 205 MW, an 18% increase over the previous year. “This growth is the result of significant improvements to our solar retrofit strategy, including product simplification, cost reduction and industry leading pricing.
Revenues from the power generation and storage businesses were $ 752 million for the fourth quarter, compared with $ 436 million in the period a year ago and $ 579 million compared to the third quarter.
This is likely just the beginning of the surge that is coming for Tesla’s energy business. The company has long said it wants to be one of the largest electricity or utility companies, and global capital is mobilizing resources to encourage a shift to renewable energy.
Tesla could be a huge beneficiary of the Biden administration’s renewable plans through their goals to dramatically increase solar development and buildings. The large infrastructure spending will require large batteries to store renewable energy. It will also require huge solar installations.
And even as the federal government invests money in renewable energy, private capital is coming to dramatically increase solar installations and energy storage.
In the past week alone, investors have invested nearly $ 2 billion in companies that lend money to homeowners for solar installations and energy efficiency improvements. One company, founded by a former SolarCity executive, announced it has raised $ 800 million in equity today.
At least some of that money will ring the cash registers for Tesla’s solar energy storage and installation business.