Wind Turbine Payback in Montgomery County, GA
Wind turbine payback in Montgomery 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 Montgomery County, GA averages 4.56 m/s (10.2 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 9,702 kWh a year, worth $1,502 at GA's 15.48¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 67 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Montgomery County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Montgomery County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.8 m/s at the hub against 4.56 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,369 kWh a year here against the turbine's 970, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 52¢/kWh, 3.3 times what GA pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.8 m/s instead of 4.56. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of GA
Montgomery County is the 1,711th windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in GA is Glynn County at 5.08 m/s, payback 49 years.
Month by month in Montgomery County
March is the strongest month here, at 5.21 m/s and about 1,187 kWh. August is the weakest, 3.60 m/s and 402 kWh, so the best month makes 3.0 times the worst. November to March brings in 52% of the year's output in Montgomery County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.06 m/s | 1,101 kWh | $170 |
| February | 5.07 m/s | 999 kWh | $155 |
| March | 5.21 m/s | 1,187 kWh | $184 |
| April | 5.05 m/s | 1,060 kWh | $164 |
| May | 4.55 m/s | 820 kWh | $127 |
| June | 3.91 m/s | 505 kWh | $78 |
| July | 3.72 m/s | 447 kWh | $69 |
| August | 3.60 m/s | 402 kWh | $62 |
| September | 4.31 m/s | 677 kWh | $105 |
| October | 4.57 m/s | 829 kWh | $128 |
| November | 4.80 m/s | 923 kWh | $143 |
| December | 4.85 m/s | 983 kWh | $152 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Montgomery County averages 3.34 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.27 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.283, typical of ordinary open country. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 6,915 to 14,397 kWh a year, 108% 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 | 4.07 m/s | 6,915 kWh | 93 years |
| 30 m | 4.56 m/s | 9,706 kWh | 67 years |
| 40 m | 4.95 m/s | 12,182 kWh | 53 years |
| 50 m | 5.27 m/s | 14,397 kWh | 45 years |
Counties around Montgomery County
1 of the 6 closest counties is windier at turbine height; the windiest, Treutlen County, averages 4.79 m/s.
- Toombs County, GA: 4.56 m/s, 9,702 kWh, payback 67 years (12 mi)
- Wheeler County, GA: 4.56 m/s, 9,702 kWh, payback 67 years (13 mi)
- Treutlen County, GA: 4.79 m/s, 11,147 kWh, payback 58 years (17 mi)
- Jeff Davis County, GA: 4.56 m/s, 9,702 kWh, payback 67 years (26 mi)
- Laurens County, GA: 3.94 m/s, 6,280 kWh, payback over 100 years (28 mi)
- Tattnall County, GA: 3.96 m/s, 6,378 kWh, payback over 100 years (29 mi)
Sun versus wind in Montgomery County
Montgomery 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 970. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.4 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.