Tesla’s Musk: 11,000 energy projects underway in Puerto Rico

SAN JUAN – Energy storage and solar panel manufacturer Tesla has about 11,000 energy projects underway in Puerto Rico, CEO Elon Musk tweeted Sunday.

Last month, after an island-wide blackout, Tesla tweeted that his company had installed batteries at 662 homes and critical facilities in Puerto Rico.

We have about 11,000 projects underway in Puerto Rico

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 3, 2018

Tesla has installed its large energy storage Powerpacks in Vieques and Culebra for a sanitary sewer treatment plant, the Arcadia water pumping station, the Ciudad Dorada elderly community, and the Boys and Girls Club of Vieques, Electrek reported. It also installed a solar and battery system at the Susan Centeno Hospital and a children’s hospital on the island.

Musk’s new tweet comes at a time when sources tell Caribbean Business that Tesla is rejecting outside contractors interested in installing their systems and is using its own Solar City employees.

Tesla had plans to build a huge microgrid to help bring back energy to the island. In October, Musk had promised to bring batteries to the island after the destruction caused by Hurricane Maria and before that Irma.

Six Tesla energy storage systems to serve as Vieques, Culebra microgrids

We currently have over 1,000 Tesla batteries on the ground in Puerto Rico delivering power at 662 locations. We’re working around the clock to quickly build more projects to support the island pic.twitter.com/5gl4JDYdV5

— Tesla (@Tesla) April 19, 2018