Tesla’s Kauai solar storage facility offers a glimpse of the company’s future

esla’s solar installation on the Hawaiian island of Kauai is not just a product launch of the company – it’s the first real proof the company’s offering that its acquisition of SolarCity is not only smart, but necessary.

Necessary, because it will help Tesla achieve its grand vision of making solar (and other renewable) energy a practical and cost-effective option for power generation everywhere, not just where the sun shines strongest.

At the unveiling of the Kauai power facility, Tesla CTO JB Straubel looked a little out of place with his tucked-in blue shirt and dark pants, speaking as he did in a lineup that included numerous Hawaiian government representatives wearing flower print shirts and sandals. But Straubel seemed confident and at ease despite the visual discrepancies, if more understated in his enjoyment of the event than the gregarious local utility executives.

There’s good reason for Straubel to savor the moment, of course – some financial observers had been wary of Tesla’s acquisition of SolarCity, following the announcement of its intent to do so last year, and continuing through the closure of the deal in November. Why, the critics argued, did it make sense to tie an electric car maker to this company that made and sold solar panels?