Wind Turbine Payback in Atlantic County, NJ
Wind turbine payback in Atlantic County
Only just. The money comes back late in the turbine's life.
At 30 m, the height a home turbine tower usually reaches, the wind in Atlantic County, NJ averages 6.47 m/s (14.5 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 23,186 kWh a year, worth $5,585 at NJ's 24.09¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 18 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Atlantic County
It is close enough that your own site decides it. If you have open land with no trees or buildings upwind, ask an installer to log the wind at 30 m or higher; anything above 6.1 m/s pays back in time. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,186 kWh a year here against the turbine's 2,319, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power already costs enough here: break-even is 22¢/kWh and NJ pays 24.09¢.
- The wind clears the break-even speed of 6.1 m/s at today's price.
Against the rest of NJ
Atlantic County is the 234th windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in NJ is Cape May County at 6.6 m/s, payback 17 years.
Month by month in Atlantic County
January is the strongest month here, at 7.41 m/s and about 2,539 kWh. August is the weakest, 4.93 m/s and 1,027 kWh, so the best month makes 2.5 times the worst. November to March brings in 52% of the year's output in Atlantic County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7.41 m/s | 2,539 kWh | $612 |
| February | 7.43 m/s | 2,308 kWh | $556 |
| March | 7.33 m/s | 2,496 kWh | $601 |
| April | 7.14 m/s | 2,306 kWh | $556 |
| May | 6.12 m/s | 1,749 kWh | $421 |
| June | 5.56 m/s | 1,351 kWh | $325 |
| July | 5.11 m/s | 1,127 kWh | $271 |
| August | 4.93 m/s | 1,027 kWh | $247 |
| September | 5.61 m/s | 1,383 kWh | $333 |
| October | 6.68 m/s | 2,098 kWh | $505 |
| November | 7.02 m/s | 2,237 kWh | $539 |
| December | 7.30 m/s | 2,475 kWh | $596 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Atlantic County averages 5.31 m/s; at 50 m it is 7.09 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.180, typical of very open, smooth ground where height adds little. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 19,793 to 27,684 kWh a year, 40% more, before counting the extra cost of the taller tower. Why tower height decides it explains the shear behind these numbers.
| Hub height | Average wind | Output | Payback |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 m | 6.01 m/s | 19,793 kWh | 21 years |
| 30 m | 6.47 m/s | 23,165 kWh | 18 years |
| 40 m | 6.81 m/s | 25,681 kWh | 16 years |
| 50 m | 7.09 m/s | 27,684 kWh | 15 years |
Counties around Atlantic County
1 of the 6 closest counties is windier at turbine height; the windiest, Cape May County, averages 6.6 m/s.
- Cumberland County, NJ: 5.8 m/s, 18,226 kWh, payback 23 years (28 mi)
- Burlington County, NJ: 5.47 m/s, 15,821 kWh, payback 26 years (28 mi)
- Cape May County, NJ: 6.6 m/s, 24,142 kWh, payback 17 years (29 mi)
- Camden County, NJ: 4.74 m/s, 10,826 kWh, payback 38 years (29 mi)
- Gloucester County, NJ: 5.8 m/s, 18,226 kWh, payback 23 years (32 mi)
- Ocean County, NJ: 5.47 m/s, 15,821 kWh, payback 26 years (34 mi)
Sun versus wind in Atlantic County
Atlantic County gets 4.06 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,186 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 2,319. This is one of the rare places where a kilowatt of turbine out-produces a kilowatt of panels, by 2.0 times. Panel output assumes an 80% system performance ratio. Wind or solar runs the same comparison for every county.
How this is worked out
Wind is NASA's Power climate record, the 2001-2025 average at 10 m and 50 m for the county's centre, carried to 30 m with this county's own measured wind shear and spread into hours with a Rayleigh distribution. The turbine is a generic 10 kW, 7 m rotor machine with 10% losses. Cost is $10,000 per kW installed with no tax credit, because the federal one ended in 2025. One county-centre number cannot see your hilltop or your tree line, so treat it as the starting point for a site survey, not a substitute. The full method and its weak spots are in how the numbers are made.