【Philippines】

Source：Creation Information Network Editor：Entertainment Time：2025-06-26 22:59:25

Elon Musk is Philippineskeen to give Puerto Rico a solar energy future as the wrecked island rebuilds in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. But the world of federal disaster relief likely isn't ready for his forward-thinking.

SEE ALSO: Elon Musk launches 100-day challenge to build the biggest battery in the world

The Tesla CEO was interacting with his followers on Twitter, as is his wont, when someone asked if Musk would use his company's renewable energy wing to rebuild Puerto Rico's electricity grid. Linked beneath the query was a long article about the potential implementation of solar and alternative sources of electricity on the U.S. territory, whose residents depended on inefficient practices like burning oil to generate power even before the storm. Ninety-five percentof Puerto Rico is still without power two weeks after Maria made landfall. After the Category 4 storm hit, the entire nation had no powerfor a time.

Unsurprisingly, Musk answered that Tesla could come to Puerto Rico's aid, if asked by the government and people.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Tesla reportedly sent employees to install "hundreds" of Powerwall units in Puerto Rico in the wake of Maria to aid in the recovery efforts, so the question isn't too far out of left field. The company has also installed a 13-megawatt solar farm in Hawaii on the island of Kauai and a system from Tesla-acquired Solar City powers Ta’u in American Samoa, which could be the work Musk referred to in his response.

Rebuilding Puerto Rico's electrical grid in the same way would, however, be a project on an entirely different level, no matter what Musk says about Tesla's scalability limit.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

Puerto Rico is much larger than Kauai or Ta'u, and there are other complexities to consider, like the need to restore power to the suffering population as quickly as possible. The massive efforts needed to create a new electric grid would require a longer development process. FEMA guidelines likely wouldn't encourage this type of rebuilding efforts, either.

Musk was probably genuine in his response — and there's no proof that the Tesla system couldn't work in Puerto Rico. Given the circumstances, however, an all-new Tesla power gird isn't something that could happen just yet.

That uncertainty didn't stop Puerto Rico's governor Ricardo Rossello from responding to Musk on Twitter a few hours later. Rossello challenged the Tesla CEO to take on the Puerto Rican power grid as a demonstration of the company's capabilities.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Musk replied that he's open to talk about the project. There might be some progress on planning a Tesla-built power grid for Puerto Rico from the conversation — but that doesn't change the current conditions on the island.

UPDATE: Oct. 6, 2017, 9:22 a.m. EDT: This story was updated to addPuerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello's response to Musk.

Featured Video For You

A team of German students have built the world's fastest Hyperloop pod

Topics Sustainability Tesla Elon Musk

Previous：Best tablet deal: Save $45 on Amazon Fire HD 10 tablet

Next：Amazon Big Spring Sale 2025: Best deals under $50

【Philippines】

Related Articles

Related Recommendations

Categories

Latest Articles

Popular Articles

Hot Recommendations

Featured Column

Quick Links

Quick Links