Market Signal: the battery is what Tesla is actually buying

ContourGlobal broke ground on Project Sterling in Mohave County, Arizona on October 7: 450MWac of solar and 360MW/1.4GWh of LFP storage across more than 2,000 acres. Tesla takes 90% of the output under a PPA covering more than 1TWh a year.

The signal The plant is engineered to deliver power for up to 16 hours a day, so most of what Tesla is paying for arrives after sunset. That makes the 1.4GWh battery the asset the contract depends on.

Hiring Sterling averages roughly 400 workers through 2028 on a remote desert site with more than 300 battery containers to install and commission. Construction Managers, BESS Commissioning Engineers, and Substation Leads with WECC experience sit on the critical path.