Wind Turbine Payback in Greene County, AR
Wind turbine payback in Greene 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 Greene County, AR averages 4.96 m/s (11.1 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 12,266 kWh a year, worth $1,685 at AR's 13.74¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 59 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Greene County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Greene County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 8.4 m/s at the hub against 4.96 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,276 kWh a year here against the turbine's 1,227, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 41¢/kWh, 3.0 times what AR pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 8.4 m/s instead of 4.96. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of AR
Greene County is the 1,472nd windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in AR is Mississippi County at 5.35 m/s, payback 49 years.
Month by month in Greene County
March is the strongest month here, at 5.86 m/s and about 1,584 kWh. July is the weakest, 3.69 m/s and 436 kWh, so the best month makes 3.6 times the worst. November to March brings in 54% of the year's output in Greene County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.60 m/s | 1,421 kWh | $195 |
| February | 5.73 m/s | 1,357 kWh | $186 |
| March | 5.86 m/s | 1,584 kWh | $218 |
| April | 5.94 m/s | 1,581 kWh | $217 |
| May | 4.98 m/s | 1,056 kWh | $145 |
| June | 4.16 m/s | 607 kWh | $83 |
| July | 3.69 m/s | 436 kWh | $60 |
| August | 3.74 m/s | 456 kWh | $63 |
| September | 4.23 m/s | 638 kWh | $88 |
| October | 4.91 m/s | 1,016 kWh | $140 |
| November | 5.39 m/s | 1,251 kWh | $172 |
| December | 5.38 m/s | 1,287 kWh | $177 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Greene County averages 3.7 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.68 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.266, typical of ordinary open country. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 9,050 to 17,345 kWh a year, 92% 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 | 4.45 m/s | 9,050 kWh | 80 years |
| 30 m | 4.96 m/s | 12,255 kWh | 59 years |
| 40 m | 5.35 m/s | 14,982 kWh | 49 years |
| 50 m | 5.68 m/s | 17,345 kWh | 42 years |
Counties around Greene County
2 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Dunklin County, averages 5.35 m/s.
- Clay County, AR: 4.25 m/s, 7,897 kWh, payback 92 years (19 mi)
- Craighead County, AR: 4.96 m/s, 12,266 kWh, payback 59 years (21 mi)
- Dunklin County, MO: 5.35 m/s, 14,963 kWh, payback 47 years (28 mi)
- Randolph County, AR: 3.38 m/s, 3,868 kWh, payback over 100 years (30 mi)
- Lawrence County, AR: 3.94 m/s, 6,280 kWh, payback over 100 years (30 mi)
- Mississippi County, AR: 5.35 m/s, 14,963 kWh, payback 49 years (38 mi)
Sun versus wind in Greene County
Greene County gets 4.37 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,276 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 1,227. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.0 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.