Wind Turbine Payback in Douglas County, NE
Wind turbine payback in Douglas 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 Douglas County, NE averages 6.33 m/s (14.2 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 22,151 kWh a year, worth $2,862 at NE's 12.92¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 35 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Douglas County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Douglas County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 8.8 m/s at the hub against 6.33 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,223 kWh a year here against the turbine's 2,215, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 23¢/kWh, 1.7 times what NE pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 8.8 m/s instead of 6.33. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of NE
Douglas County is the 441st windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in NE is Cherry County at 6.83 m/s, payback 30 years.
Month by month in Douglas County
April is the strongest month here, at 7.23 m/s and about 2,354 kWh. July is the weakest, 5.17 m/s and 1,165 kWh, so the best month makes 2.0 times the worst. November to March brings in 45% of the year's output in Douglas County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6.57 m/s | 2,034 kWh | $263 |
| February | 6.60 m/s | 1,853 kWh | $239 |
| March | 6.83 m/s | 2,195 kWh | $284 |
| April | 7.23 m/s | 2,354 kWh | $304 |
| May | 6.54 m/s | 2,012 kWh | $260 |
| June | 5.99 m/s | 1,616 kWh | $209 |
| July | 5.17 m/s | 1,165 kWh | $151 |
| August | 5.19 m/s | 1,175 kWh | $152 |
| September | 6.23 m/s | 1,763 kWh | $228 |
| October | 6.60 m/s | 2,051 kWh | $265 |
| November | 6.70 m/s | 2,044 kWh | $264 |
| December | 6.43 m/s | 1,945 kWh | $251 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Douglas County averages 4.97 m/s; at 50 m it is 7.09 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.221, typical of ordinary open country. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 18,155 to 27,684 kWh a year, 52% 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 | 5.79 m/s | 18,155 kWh | 43 years |
| 30 m | 6.33 m/s | 22,174 kWh | 35 years |
| 40 m | 6.75 m/s | 25,230 kWh | 31 years |
| 50 m | 7.09 m/s | 27,684 kWh | 28 years |
Counties around Douglas County
1 of the 6 closest counties is windier at turbine height; the windiest, Saunders County, averages 6.41 m/s.
- Sarpy County, NE: 6.29 m/s, 21,855 kWh, payback 35 years (13 mi)
- Washington County, NE: 6.33 m/s, 22,151 kWh, payback 35 years (17 mi)
- Saunders County, NE: 6.41 m/s, 22,743 kWh, payback 34 years (26 mi)
- Cass County, NE: 6.29 m/s, 21,855 kWh, payback 35 years (27 mi)
- Pottawattamie County, IA: 6.31 m/s, 22,003 kWh, payback 31 years (32 mi)
- Harrison County, IA: 6.31 m/s, 22,003 kWh, payback 31 years (32 mi)
Sun versus wind in Douglas County
Douglas County gets 4.19 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,223 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 2,215. This is one of the rare places where a kilowatt of turbine out-produces a kilowatt of panels, by 1.8 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.