Wind Turbine Payback in Randolph County, GA
Wind turbine payback in Randolph 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 Randolph County, GA averages 3.3 m/s (7.4 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 3,577 kWh a year, worth $554 at GA's 15.48¢/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 Randolph County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Randolph County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.8 m/s at the hub against 3.3 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,396 kWh a year here against the turbine's 358, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 140¢/kWh, 9.0 times what GA pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.8 m/s instead of 3.3. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of GA
Randolph County is the 2,741st 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 Randolph County
March is the strongest month here, at 3.77 m/s and about 463 kWh. July is the weakest, 2.62 m/s and 137 kWh, so the best month makes 3.4 times the worst. November to March brings in 54% of the year's output in Randolph County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3.67 m/s | 427 kWh | $66 |
| February | 3.71 m/s | 399 kWh | $62 |
| March | 3.77 m/s | 463 kWh | $72 |
| April | 3.67 m/s | 413 kWh | $64 |
| May | 3.20 m/s | 274 kWh | $42 |
| June | 2.76 m/s | 161 kWh | $25 |
| July | 2.62 m/s | 137 kWh | $21 |
| August | 2.65 m/s | 143 kWh | $22 |
| September | 3.17 m/s | 258 kWh | $40 |
| October | 3.37 m/s | 326 kWh | $50 |
| November | 3.54 m/s | 369 kWh | $57 |
| December | 3.55 m/s | 384 kWh | $59 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Randolph County averages 2.05 m/s; at 50 m it is 4.12 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 1,965 to 7,195 kWh a year, 266% 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 | 2.77 m/s | 1,965 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 3.3 m/s | 3,579 kWh | over 100 years |
| 40 m | 3.74 m/s | 5,341 kWh | over 100 years |
| 50 m | 4.12 m/s | 7,195 kWh | 90 years |
Counties around Randolph County
4 of the 6 closest counties are windier at turbine height; the windiest, Calhoun County, averages 4.66 m/s.
- Quitman County, GA: 3.3 m/s, 3,577 kWh, payback over 100 years (16 mi)
- Clay County, GA: 4.18 m/s, 7,515 kWh, payback 86 years (17 mi)
- Calhoun County, GA: 4.66 m/s, 10,320 kWh, payback 63 years (18 mi)
- Terrell County, GA: 4.3 m/s, 8,176 kWh, payback 79 years (18 mi)
- Stewart County, GA: 3.3 m/s, 3,577 kWh, payback over 100 years (22 mi)
- Webster County, GA: 4.3 m/s, 8,176 kWh, payback 79 years (23 mi)
Sun versus wind in Randolph County
Randolph County gets 4.78 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,396 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 358. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 3.9 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.