Wind Turbine Payback in Ben Hill County, GA
Wind turbine payback in Ben Hill 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 Ben Hill County, GA averages 4.47 m/s (10 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 9,160 kWh a year, worth $1,418 at GA's 15.48¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 71 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Ben Hill County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Ben Hill County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.8 m/s at the hub against 4.47 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,399 kWh a year here against the turbine's 916, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 55¢/kWh, 3.5 times what GA pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.8 m/s instead of 4.47. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of GA
Ben Hill County is the 1,760th windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in GA is Glynn County at 5.08 m/s, payback 49 years.
Month by month in Ben Hill County
March is the strongest month here, at 5.09 m/s and about 1,115 kWh. August is the weakest, 3.52 m/s and 376 kWh, so the best month makes 3.0 times the worst. November to March brings in 54% of the year's output in Ben Hill County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.00 m/s | 1,065 kWh | $165 |
| February | 5.00 m/s | 962 kWh | $149 |
| March | 5.09 m/s | 1,115 kWh | $173 |
| April | 4.89 m/s | 969 kWh | $150 |
| May | 4.36 m/s | 724 kWh | $112 |
| June | 3.76 m/s | 445 kWh | $69 |
| July | 3.55 m/s | 385 kWh | $60 |
| August | 3.52 m/s | 376 kWh | $58 |
| September | 4.24 m/s | 645 kWh | $100 |
| October | 4.53 m/s | 811 kWh | $126 |
| November | 4.80 m/s | 922 kWh | $143 |
| December | 4.84 m/s | 977 kWh | $151 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Ben Hill County averages 3.26 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.17 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.287, typical of ordinary open country. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 6,450 to 13,698 kWh a year, 112% 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 | 3.97 m/s | 6,450 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 4.46 m/s | 9,130 kWh | 71 years |
| 40 m | 4.85 m/s | 11,533 kWh | 56 years |
| 50 m | 5.17 m/s | 13,698 kWh | 47 years |
Counties around Ben Hill County
4 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Turner County, averages 4.84 m/s.
- Irwin County, GA: 4.47 m/s, 9,160 kWh, payback 71 years (12 mi)
- Telfair County, GA: 4.54 m/s, 9,580 kWh, payback 67 years (17 mi)
- Coffee County, GA: 4.47 m/s, 9,160 kWh, payback 71 years (22 mi)
- Wilcox County, GA: 4.76 m/s, 10,954 kWh, payback 59 years (23 mi)
- Turner County, GA: 4.84 m/s, 11,472 kWh, payback 56 years (28 mi)
- Dodge County, GA: 4.54 m/s, 9,580 kWh, payback 67 years (29 mi)
Sun versus wind in Ben Hill County
Ben Hill County gets 4.79 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,399 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 916. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.5 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.