According to a report by Tesla North, Tesla’s Megapacks will power the Oneida Energy Storage Project, Canada’s largest energy storage project near Nanticoke, Ontario.
For those who aren’t familiar, Megapack is a powerful battery that provides energy storage and support, helping to stabilize the grid and prevent outages.
“By strengthening our sustainable energy infrastructure, we can create a cleaner grid that protects our communities and the environment,” explains Tesla’s website.
In simpler terms, Megapack is the commercial version of its Powerwall, a smaller battery storage solution for homeowners. The systems are all handled and managed by Tesla software.
As announced by the government of Canada and the province of Ontario, the Oneida Energy Storage Project will deliver a 250 megawatt / 1,000 megawatt-hour energy storage facility.
With an active battery supply agreement with Tesla, Oneida will award a $141 million Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract to Aecon.
The Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) will also have electricity storage services provided by Oneida through a 20-year agreement.
Construction on the Oneida project, which will provide a gigawatt-hour of capacity to the Ontario grid, is expected to start in Q2 of 2023 and be complete by 2025. There’s enough stored energy from these Tesla Megapacks to power a city the size of Oshawa at peak demand.
The project will also nearly double Ontario’s clean energy storage resources to 475 MW, up from 225 MW today.
“As a leader in the energy transition, Aecon is working at the forefront to build and operate sustainable infrastructure and the battery energy storage market offers robust opportunities for continued growth in a significant global market,” said Jean-Louis Servranckx, President and Chief Executive Officer, Aecon Group Inc., in a statement.
“The Oneida Energy storage project is a great example of what can be accomplished through strong and meaningful partnership with Indigenous communities,” said Todd Smith, Minister of Energy, in a statement.
According to Natural Resources Canada, the Oneida Energy storage project is expected to reduce carbon emissions by between 2.2 to 4.1 million tonnes, which is equivalent to taking 40,000 gas cars off the roads.
