Tesla has started production of its next-generation Megapack 3 in Brookshire, Texas, giving the company a larger and more installation-friendly battery just as electricity grids face soaring demand from electric transport, renewable power and data centres. The first units rolled off the line at Tesla’s newest Megafactory only 16 months after groundbreaking, turning a product unveiled last year into shipping hardware.
More energy in the same footprint
Each Megapack 3 stores about 5 MWh, up from 3.9 MWh for the Megapack 2 XL—a roughly 28% increase without requiring more ground area. Tesla says the design uses a larger 2.8-litre cell format and reduces thermal-system connection points by 78%. Those changes matter beyond the headline capacity: fewer cooling connections can simplify assembly and maintenance, while denser storage lets project developers put more usable energy on constrained sites.
The Brookshire factory is designed for 50 GWh of annual production. Tesla is also pairing the new battery with its Megablock concept, which combines as many as four Megapack 3 units with transformer and switchgear equipment installed at the factory. The company says this approach can deliver 248 MWh per acre, allow a 1 GWh project to be deployed in 20 business days and make installation about 23% faster. If those claims hold up in commercial projects, the less glamorous work of standardising wiring and site construction could be as important as the battery upgrade itself.
Affordable vehicles and alternative batteries advance
The wider EV market is moving on cost as well as capacity. Ford has named its upcoming midsize electric pickup the Fathom and set pre-order pricing at US$28,350 before a US$1,595 destination charge for the standard-range version. Due in early 2027, it will be the first model on Ford’s Universal EV Platform. Ford says it will include a native NACS charging port, bidirectional charging, BlueCruise, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Final battery and range specifications remain unannounced, so the attractive price still needs to be judged against the production vehicle’s real-world capability.
Battery chemistry is broadening too. Tonly Heavy Industry and Hina Battery have put a sodium-ion electric mining truck into service at the Tangshan Sanyou limestone mine in China. The K120E carries a 676 kWh Haixing battery rated at 165 Wh/kg, with the developers claiming more than 8,000 cycles. Sodium is more abundant than lithium, and the chemistry’s thermal stability and cold-weather performance could make it valuable for demanding industrial vehicles even where maximum energy density is not the top priority.
Competition keeps accelerating
BYD remains central to that competitive pressure. Although its latest monthly figures predate today’s announcements, they provide useful context: the company reported 419,211 new-energy vehicle sales in July, up 21.8% year on year, while overseas passenger-vehicle and pickup deliveries reached a record 179,841. Tesla’s expanded storage output, Ford’s sub-US$30,000 truck target and BYD’s export momentum show an industry competing simultaneously on energy infrastructure, affordability and global scale.
For EV enthusiasts, Megapack 3 is a reminder that the transition is bigger than the cars in driveways. Cheaper electric vehicles need reliable charging, and growing renewable generation needs storage that can be installed quickly. The next phase of electrification will be won not by one breakthrough, but by better batteries, faster factories and lower-cost vehicles arriving together.