Wind Turbine Payback in Irion County, TX
Wind turbine payback in Irion 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 Irion County, TX averages 6.51 m/s (14.6 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 23,481 kWh a year, worth $3,764 at TX's 16.03¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 27 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Irion County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Irion County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.6 m/s at the hub against 6.51 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,524 kWh a year here against the turbine's 2,348, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 21¢/kWh, 1.3 times what TX pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.6 m/s instead of 6.51. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of TX
Irion County is the 193rd windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in TX is Dallam County at 6.82 m/s, payback 24 years.
Month by month in Irion County
April is the strongest month here, at 7.37 m/s and about 2,439 kWh. September is the weakest, 5.73 m/s and 1,456 kWh, so the best month makes 1.7 times the worst. November to March brings in 43% of the year's output in Irion County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6.47 m/s | 1,968 kWh | $315 |
| February | 6.75 m/s | 1,934 kWh | $310 |
| March | 7.05 m/s | 2,328 kWh | $373 |
| April | 7.37 m/s | 2,439 kWh | $391 |
| May | 6.93 m/s | 2,257 kWh | $362 |
| June | 6.71 m/s | 2,051 kWh | $329 |
| July | 5.99 m/s | 1,668 kWh | $267 |
| August | 5.74 m/s | 1,511 kWh | $242 |
| September | 5.73 m/s | 1,456 kWh | $233 |
| October | 6.40 m/s | 1,928 kWh | $309 |
| November | 6.52 m/s | 1,937 kWh | $311 |
| December | 6.46 m/s | 1,962 kWh | $315 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Irion County averages 5.17 m/s; at 50 m it is 7.25 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.210, typical of ordinary open country. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 19,563 to 28,811 kWh a year, 47% 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 | 5.98 m/s | 19,563 kWh | 32 years |
| 30 m | 6.51 m/s | 23,499 kWh | 27 years |
| 40 m | 6.92 m/s | 26,455 kWh | 24 years |
| 50 m | 7.25 m/s | 28,811 kWh | 22 years |
Counties around Irion County
None of the 6 closest counties is windier than Irion County.
- Tom Green County, TX: 6.28 m/s, 21,781 kWh, payback 29 years (31 mi)
- Reagan County, TX: 6.51 m/s, 23,481 kWh, payback 27 years (32 mi)
- Sterling County, TX: 6.38 m/s, 22,521 kWh, payback 28 years (37 mi)
- Schleicher County, TX: 6.39 m/s, 22,595 kWh, payback 28 years (39 mi)
- Coke County, TX: 6.25 m/s, 21,558 kWh, payback 29 years (45 mi)
- Crockett County, TX: 6.23 m/s, 21,410 kWh, payback 29 years (48 mi)
Sun versus wind in Irion County
Irion County gets 5.22 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,524 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 2,348. This is one of the rare places where a kilowatt of turbine out-produces a kilowatt of panels, by 1.5 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.