With homes in South Australia suffering from frequent and expensive power outages, that state’s government began searching for a more cost-effective and environmentally friendly backup system for their electrical grid.

Then, last July, Elon Musk, the chief executive of alternative energy company Tesla, offered to build the world’s biggest lithium ion battery as the ultimate backup solution for the territory.

Not only but, but Musk wagered that if the battery wasn’t ready to be switched on within 100 days of signing the contract, he would gift it to the state free of charge.

According to new data that was presented this month at the Australian Energy Week conference in Melbourne, as reported by Renew Economy, the 129 megawatt battery has already resulted in stunning success.

For starters, the battery has resulted in a 90% drop in maintenance costs. In addition to being a cheaper replacement to the fossil-fuel dependent system that was previously used by the energy market operator, the battery creates zero carbon emissions. It is also capable of responding to outages in a matter of seconds, which could not be achieved by previous backups.

Within the first four months of operation, the battery has already saved consumers an estimated $26 million (AU$35 […]