Wind Turbine Payback in Beaufort County, NC
Wind turbine payback in Beaufort County
No. The turbine wears out before it pays for itself.
At 30 m, the height a home turbine tower usually reaches, the wind in Beaufort County, NC averages 4.7 m/s (10.5 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 10,571 kWh a year, worth $1,579 at NC's 14.94¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 63 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Beaufort County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Beaufort County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.9 m/s at the hub against 4.7 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,288 kWh a year here against the turbine's 1,057, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 47¢/kWh, 3.2 times what NC pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.9 m/s instead of 4.7. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of NC
Beaufort County is the 1,610th windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in NC is Dare County at 6.91 m/s, payback 25 years.
Month by month in Beaufort County
March is the strongest month here, at 5.34 m/s and about 1,268 kWh. August is the weakest, 3.76 m/s and 461 kWh, so the best month makes 2.8 times the worst. November to March brings in 50% of the year's output in Beaufort County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.09 m/s | 1,114 kWh | $166 |
| February | 5.26 m/s | 1,098 kWh | $164 |
| March | 5.34 m/s | 1,268 kWh | $189 |
| April | 5.40 m/s | 1,257 kWh | $188 |
| May | 4.73 m/s | 914 kWh | $137 |
| June | 4.18 m/s | 616 kWh | $92 |
| July | 4.00 m/s | 560 kWh | $84 |
| August | 3.76 m/s | 461 kWh | $69 |
| September | 4.39 m/s | 715 kWh | $107 |
| October | 4.57 m/s | 827 kWh | $124 |
| November | 4.83 m/s | 935 kWh | $140 |
| December | 4.89 m/s | 1,000 kWh | $149 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Beaufort County averages 3.45 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.42 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.281, typical of ordinary open country. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 7,567 to 15,462 kWh a year, 104% 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 | 4.19 m/s | 7,567 kWh | 89 years |
| 30 m | 4.7 m/s | 10,541 kWh | 64 years |
| 40 m | 5.09 m/s | 13,150 kWh | 51 years |
| 50 m | 5.42 m/s | 15,462 kWh | 43 years |
Counties around Beaufort County
6 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Hyde County, averages 5.79 m/s.
- Pamlico County, NC: 4.81 m/s, 11,276 kWh, payback 59 years (25 mi)
- Craven County, NC: 4.81 m/s, 11,276 kWh, payback 59 years (29 mi)
- Washington County, NC: 4.96 m/s, 12,266 kWh, payback 55 years (29 mi)
- Martin County, NC: 4.96 m/s, 12,266 kWh, payback 55 years (30 mi)
- Pitt County, NC: 4.94 m/s, 12,132 kWh, payback 55 years (31 mi)
- Hyde County, NC: 5.79 m/s, 18,153 kWh, payback 37 years (39 mi)
Sun versus wind in Beaufort County
Beaufort County gets 4.41 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,288 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 1,057. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.2 times as much here as the turbine. 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.