Wind Turbine Payback in Oconee County, SC
Wind turbine payback in Oconee 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 Oconee County, SC averages 2.95 m/s (6.6 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 2,455 kWh a year, worth $390 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 Oconee County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Oconee County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.6 m/s at the hub against 2.95 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,314 kWh a year here against the turbine's 246, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 204¢/kWh, 12.8 times what SC pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.6 m/s instead of 2.95. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of SC
Oconee County is the 3,083rd 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 Oconee County
March is the strongest month here, at 3.44 m/s and about 347 kWh. August is the weakest, 2.30 m/s and 82 kWh, so the best month makes 4.2 times the worst. November to March brings in 54% of the year's output in Oconee County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3.28 m/s | 298 kWh | $47 |
| February | 3.36 m/s | 291 kWh | $46 |
| March | 3.44 m/s | 347 kWh | $55 |
| April | 3.40 m/s | 323 kWh | $51 |
| May | 2.92 m/s | 200 kWh | $32 |
| June | 2.54 m/s | 117 kWh | $19 |
| July | 2.37 m/s | 93 kWh | $15 |
| August | 2.30 m/s | 82 kWh | $13 |
| September | 2.76 m/s | 159 kWh | $25 |
| October | 2.99 m/s | 220 kWh | $35 |
| November | 3.10 m/s | 238 kWh | $38 |
| December | 3.11 m/s | 248 kWh | $39 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Oconee County averages 1.78 m/s; at 50 m it is 3.74 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.461, typical of rough, sheltered ground: trees or buildings slow the low wind a lot. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 1,253 to 5,342 kWh a year, 326% 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 | 2.45 m/s | 1,253 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 2.96 m/s | 2,471 kWh | over 100 years |
| 40 m | 3.37 m/s | 3,847 kWh | over 100 years |
| 50 m | 3.74 m/s | 5,342 kWh | over 100 years |
Counties around Oconee County
3 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Pickens County, averages 3.48 m/s.
- Stephens County, GA: 2.95 m/s, 2,455 kWh, payback over 100 years (19 mi)
- Pickens County, SC: 3.48 m/s, 4,250 kWh, payback over 100 years (21 mi)
- Rabun County, GA: 3.05 m/s, 2,751 kWh, payback over 100 years (22 mi)
- Franklin County, GA: 2.95 m/s, 2,455 kWh, payback over 100 years (27 mi)
- Habersham County, GA: 3.12 m/s, 2,970 kWh, payback over 100 years (28 mi)
- Hart County, GA: 2.95 m/s, 2,455 kWh, payback over 100 years (28 mi)
Sun versus wind in Oconee County
Oconee County gets 4.5 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,314 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 246. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 5.3 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.