Wind Turbine Payback in Cleveland County, NC
Wind turbine payback in Cleveland 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 Cleveland County, NC averages 4.22 m/s (9.4 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 7,732 kWh a year, worth $1,155 at NC's 14.94¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 87 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Cleveland County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Cleveland County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.9 m/s at the hub against 4.22 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,296 kWh a year here against the turbine's 773, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 65¢/kWh, 4.3 times what NC pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.9 m/s instead of 4.22. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of NC
Cleveland County is the 1,935th 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 Cleveland County
March is the strongest month here, at 4.98 m/s and about 1,056 kWh. August is the weakest, 3.16 m/s and 263 kWh, so the best month makes 4.0 times the worst. November to March brings in 53% of the year's output in Cleveland County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4.61 m/s | 851 kWh | $127 |
| February | 4.88 m/s | 901 kWh | $135 |
| March | 4.98 m/s | 1,056 kWh | $158 |
| April | 5.05 m/s | 1,055 kWh | $158 |
| May | 4.25 m/s | 670 kWh | $100 |
| June | 3.60 m/s | 389 kWh | $58 |
| July | 3.26 m/s | 293 kWh | $44 |
| August | 3.16 m/s | 263 kWh | $39 |
| September | 3.91 m/s | 505 kWh | $75 |
| October | 4.21 m/s | 650 kWh | $97 |
| November | 4.37 m/s | 705 kWh | $105 |
| December | 4.37 m/s | 728 kWh | $109 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Cleveland County averages 3.09 m/s; at 50 m it is 4.87 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.283, typical of ordinary open country. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 5,421 to 11,668 kWh a year, 115% 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 | 3.76 m/s | 5,421 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 4.21 m/s | 7,702 kWh | 87 years |
| 40 m | 4.57 m/s | 9,775 kWh | 69 years |
| 50 m | 4.87 m/s | 11,668 kWh | 57 years |
Counties around Cleveland County
None of the 6 closest counties is windier than Cleveland County.
- Cherokee County, SC: 3.7 m/s, 5,164 kWh, payback over 100 years (20 mi)
- Rutherford County, NC: 3.24 m/s, 3,367 kWh, payback over 100 years (21 mi)
- Lincoln County, NC: 4.22 m/s, 7,732 kWh, payback 87 years (21 mi)
- Gaston County, NC: 4.22 m/s, 7,732 kWh, payback 87 years (22 mi)
- Burke County, NC: 3.24 m/s, 3,367 kWh, payback over 100 years (30 mi)
- Catawba County, NC: 4.22 m/s, 7,732 kWh, payback 87 years (30 mi)
Sun versus wind in Cleveland County
Cleveland County gets 4.44 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,296 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 773. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.7 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.