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Tesla Energy expands into 800 Home Depot stores; Lowe’s expansion in discussion

Tesla solar powerwall

Tesla is planning on selling their solar products within Tesla-branded spaces at 800 Home Depots stores across the U.S.

The Tesla solar mini stores inside Home Depot will be have Tesla employees on hand to demonstrate and answer questions about their solar panels and also Powerwall products.




Tesla acquired SolarCity in 2016 and has been focusing on selling solar panels as opposed to leasing them to customers.  As a result, Tesla has had to cut back on the aggressive expansion plans that Solarcity previously had.  However, with this news that Tesla will be expanding into 800 Home Depot stores, it now appears that Tesla may be ready to start gearing up expansion in their solar division.

One of the unique aspects of Tesla’s solar business is their ability to provide energy storage along with solar panels.  Their Powerwall product is able to store 13.5 kWh of energy and can provide extensive backup power in case of grid failure.

As reported by Bloomberg, Tesla’s new Home Depot displays will be quite large, 12 feet tall and 7 feet wall.  In other words, Tesla will be building quite a high display that will likely include samples of their solar products, both solar panels and Powerwalls.

Bloomberg also reported that Lowe’s has been in discussion with Tesla about selling it’s solar products in their stores as well.

Previously, Home Depot had a relationship with SolarCity where Solarcity had in-store displays to sell solar panels.  However, I’ve personally experienced the SolarCity displays several times at Home Depot and they were far from appealing.  I think Tesla has a much better chance at making a display that will be inviting.  Further, Tesla’s brand is much stronger than Solarcity.




InsideEVs estimates 1875 Tesla Model 3s were delivered in January 2018

tesla model 3 factory

This morning InsideEVs published their January estimates of how many electric vehicles each manufacturer has sold in the U.S.

Tesla doesn’t not publish monthly sales figures, but rather reports deliveries on a quarterly basis.  So, InsideEVs uses their own method to estimate deliveries:

We never know for sure what the monthly numbers total up to until Tesla’s quarterly (or annual) updates add more clarity. However, we do our best to keep our finger on the pulse of what’s happening.

To come to an estimated monthly number, we don’t simply take the quarterly estimate given by Tesla and divide it by 3 and hope it all works out. This is surely not how it works in the real world. We simply report from the data we accumulate ourselves, including first-hand accounts available from the factory and from the community itself.

Historically, while InsideEVs hasn’t been exact on monthly Tesla deliveries in the past, their estimates have been generally in the ballpark and provide useful information.

Most notable, InsideEVs estimates that Tesla has delivered 1,875 Model 3s in January.

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Tesla Referral Program extended and updated with chance to race a Tesla Semi

21" Tesla arachnid wheels referral program

The current Tesla Referral Program expired last night and Tesla has updated the referral program with the following changes.

First, the referral program is now extended through April 30, 2018.  This means that since its an extension, previous referrals made in the last program count toward this program.  So, if you were one referral away from Arachnid wheels or a Powerwall 2, then this is a great opportunity for another chance.

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