Wind Turbine Payback in Jasper County, SC
Wind turbine payback in Jasper 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 Jasper County, SC averages 3.48 m/s (7.8 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 4,250 kWh a year, worth $676 at SC's 15.9¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of over 100 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Jasper County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Jasper County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.6 m/s at the hub against 3.48 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,369 kWh a year here against the turbine's 425, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 118¢/kWh, 7.4 times what SC pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.6 m/s instead of 3.48. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of SC
Jasper County is the 2,536th windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in SC is Beaufort County at 5.71 m/s, payback 36 years.
Month by month in Jasper County
March is the strongest month here, at 3.94 m/s and about 534 kWh. August is the weakest, 2.84 m/s and 184 kWh, so the best month makes 2.9 times the worst. November to March brings in 50% of the year's output in Jasper County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3.73 m/s | 451 kWh | $72 |
| February | 3.79 m/s | 427 kWh | $68 |
| March | 3.94 m/s | 534 kWh | $85 |
| April | 3.90 m/s | 501 kWh | $80 |
| May | 3.57 m/s | 393 kWh | $62 |
| June | 3.11 m/s | 241 kWh | $38 |
| July | 2.96 m/s | 212 kWh | $34 |
| August | 2.84 m/s | 184 kWh | $29 |
| September | 3.30 m/s | 294 kWh | $47 |
| October | 3.44 m/s | 347 kWh | $55 |
| November | 3.57 m/s | 380 kWh | $60 |
| December | 3.57 m/s | 390 kWh | $62 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Jasper County averages 2.16 m/s; at 50 m it is 4.34 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.434, typical of rough, sheltered ground: trees or buildings slow the low wind a lot. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 2,359 to 8,403 kWh a year, 256% 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 | 2.92 m/s | 2,359 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 3.48 m/s | 4,238 kWh | over 100 years |
| 40 m | 3.94 m/s | 6,277 kWh | over 100 years |
| 50 m | 4.34 m/s | 8,403 kWh | 75 years |
Counties around Jasper County
5 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Beaufort County, averages 5.71 m/s.
- Effingham County, GA: 3.48 m/s, 4,250 kWh, payback over 100 years (19 mi)
- Beaufort County, SC: 5.71 m/s, 17,565 kWh, payback 36 years (20 mi)
- Hampton County, SC: 4.02 m/s, 6,678 kWh, payback 94 years (25 mi)
- Chatham County, GA: 3.85 m/s, 5,847 kWh, payback over 100 years (31 mi)
- Colleton County, SC: 4.05 m/s, 6,831 kWh, payback 92 years (36 mi)
- Bryan County, GA: 3.85 m/s, 5,847 kWh, payback over 100 years (38 mi)
Sun versus wind in Jasper County
Jasper County gets 4.69 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,369 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 425. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 3.2 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.