Wind Turbine Payback in Lenoir County, NC
Wind turbine payback in Lenoir 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 Lenoir County, NC averages 4.79 m/s (10.7 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 11,147 kWh a year, worth $1,665 at NC's 14.94¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 60 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Lenoir County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Lenoir County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.9 m/s at the hub against 4.79 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,305 kWh a year here against the turbine's 1,115, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 45¢/kWh, 3.0 times what NC pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.9 m/s instead of 4.79. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of NC
Lenoir County is the 1,566th 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 Lenoir County
March is the strongest month here, at 5.49 m/s and about 1,357 kWh. August is the weakest, 3.78 m/s and 468 kWh, so the best month makes 2.9 times the worst. November to March brings in 51% of the year's output in Lenoir County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.19 m/s | 1,173 kWh | $175 |
| February | 5.41 m/s | 1,182 kWh | $177 |
| March | 5.49 m/s | 1,357 kWh | $203 |
| April | 5.55 m/s | 1,349 kWh | $202 |
| May | 4.81 m/s | 959 kWh | $143 |
| June | 4.23 m/s | 640 kWh | $96 |
| July | 4.06 m/s | 583 kWh | $87 |
| August | 3.78 m/s | 468 kWh | $70 |
| September | 4.44 m/s | 738 kWh | $110 |
| October | 4.66 m/s | 874 kWh | $131 |
| November | 4.91 m/s | 980 kWh | $146 |
| December | 4.98 m/s | 1,052 kWh | $157 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Lenoir County averages 3.55 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.5 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.272, typical of ordinary open country. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 8,102 to 16,037 kWh a year, 98% 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 | 4.29 m/s | 8,102 kWh | 83 years |
| 30 m | 4.79 m/s | 11,124 kWh | 60 years |
| 40 m | 5.18 m/s | 13,741 kWh | 49 years |
| 50 m | 5.5 m/s | 16,037 kWh | 42 years |
Counties around Lenoir County
5 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Wayne County, averages 5.2 m/s.
- Greene County, NC: 4.94 m/s, 12,132 kWh, payback 55 years (17 mi)
- Jones County, NC: 4.79 m/s, 11,147 kWh, payback 60 years (21 mi)
- Wayne County, NC: 5.2 m/s, 13,907 kWh, payback 48 years (22 mi)
- Duplin County, NC: 4.9 m/s, 11,866 kWh, payback 56 years (27 mi)
- Pitt County, NC: 4.94 m/s, 12,132 kWh, payback 55 years (28 mi)
- Craven County, NC: 4.81 m/s, 11,276 kWh, payback 59 years (32 mi)
Sun versus wind in Lenoir County
Lenoir County gets 4.47 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,305 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 1,115. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.2 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.