Wind Turbine Payback in Marshall County, WV
Wind turbine payback in Marshall 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 Marshall County, WV averages 3.36 m/s (7.5 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 3,794 kWh a year, worth $591 at WV's 15.58¢/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 Marshall County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Marshall County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.7 m/s at the hub against 3.36 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,124 kWh a year here against the turbine's 379, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 132¢/kWh, 8.5 times what WV pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.7 m/s instead of 3.36. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of WV
Marshall County is the 2,665th windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in WV is Preston County at 3.73 m/s, payback over 100 years.
Month by month in Marshall County
January is the strongest month here, at 4.01 m/s and about 562 kWh. August is the weakest, 2.55 m/s and 125 kWh, so the best month makes 4.5 times the worst. November to March brings in 59% of the year's output in Marshall County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4.01 m/s | 562 kWh | $88 |
| February | 4.11 m/s | 548 kWh | $85 |
| March | 3.91 m/s | 522 kWh | $81 |
| April | 3.84 m/s | 477 kWh | $74 |
| May | 3.14 m/s | 258 kWh | $40 |
| June | 2.86 m/s | 180 kWh | $28 |
| July | 2.62 m/s | 136 kWh | $21 |
| August | 2.55 m/s | 125 kWh | $19 |
| September | 2.82 m/s | 172 kWh | $27 |
| October | 3.28 m/s | 299 kWh | $47 |
| November | 3.50 m/s | 355 kWh | $55 |
| December | 3.68 m/s | 432 kWh | $67 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Marshall County averages 2.04 m/s; at 50 m it is 4.23 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.453, typical of rough, sheltered ground: trees or buildings slow the low wind a lot. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 2,029 to 7,787 kWh a year, 284% 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 | 2.79 m/s | 2,029 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 3.36 m/s | 3,779 kWh | over 100 years |
| 40 m | 3.82 m/s | 5,722 kWh | over 100 years |
| 50 m | 4.23 m/s | 7,787 kWh | 82 years |
Counties around Marshall County
2 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Greene County, averages 3.45 m/s.
- Ohio County, WV: 3.36 m/s, 3,794 kWh, payback over 100 years (17 mi)
- Wetzel County, WV: 3.29 m/s, 3,541 kWh, payback over 100 years (18 mi)
- Belmont County, OH: 3.38 m/s, 3,868 kWh, payback over 100 years (19 mi)
- Greene County, PA: 3.45 m/s, 4,133 kWh, payback over 100 years (24 mi)
- Monroe County, OH: 3.27 m/s, 3,471 kWh, payback over 100 years (24 mi)
- Tyler County, WV: 3.29 m/s, 3,541 kWh, payback over 100 years (29 mi)
Sun versus wind in Marshall County
Marshall County gets 3.85 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,124 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 379. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 3.0 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.