Wind Turbine Payback in Surry County, VA
Wind turbine payback in Surry 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 Surry County, VA averages 4.22 m/s (9.4 mph). A 10 kW turbine there would make about 7,732 kWh a year, worth $1,311 at VA's 16.95¢/kWh. Against an installed cost of about $100,000, that is a payback of 76 years, and the turbine is built to last about 20.
What to do in Surry County
A home turbine is not worth buying for savings in Surry County unless your spot is far windier than the county average, 7.3 m/s at the hub against 4.22 m/s here. Per kW, solar panels would make about 1,259 kWh a year here against the turbine's 773, so get a solar quote first.
What would have to change
- Power would have to cost 65¢/kWh, 3.8 times what VA pays now.
- Or the average wind at the hub would have to be 7.3 m/s instead of 4.22. A taller tower or an exposed ridge can add some of that; a rooftop never will.
Against the rest of VA
Surry County is the 1,935th windiest of 3,144 US counties at turbine height; the national middle is 4.79 m/s. The windiest in VA is Northampton County at 7.01 m/s, payback 22 years.
Month by month in Surry County
March is the strongest month here, at 4.85 m/s and about 981 kWh. August is the weakest, 3.36 m/s and 322 kWh, so the best month makes 3.0 times the worst. November to March brings in 52% of the year's output in Surry County.
| Month | Wind at 30 m | Output | Worth |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4.64 m/s | 867 kWh | $147 |
| February | 4.79 m/s | 857 kWh | $145 |
| March | 4.85 m/s | 981 kWh | $166 |
| April | 4.85 m/s | 949 kWh | $161 |
| May | 4.21 m/s | 651 kWh | $110 |
| June | 3.72 m/s | 432 kWh | $73 |
| July | 3.50 m/s | 369 kWh | $63 |
| August | 3.36 m/s | 322 kWh | $55 |
| September | 3.85 m/s | 482 kWh | $82 |
| October | 4.13 m/s | 616 kWh | $104 |
| November | 4.36 m/s | 699 kWh | $118 |
| December | 4.42 m/s | 755 kWh | $128 |
What a taller tower would buy
Measured at 10 m the wind in Surry County averages 2.89 m/s; at 50 m it is 5.04 m/s. That gives a shear exponent of 0.346, typical of rough, sheltered ground: trees or buildings slow the low wind a lot. Going from 20 m to 50 m takes output from 5,037 to 12,805 kWh a year, 154% 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 | 3.67 m/s | 5,037 kWh | over 100 years |
| 30 m | 4.22 m/s | 7,751 kWh | 76 years |
| 40 m | 4.67 m/s | 10,354 kWh | 57 years |
| 50 m | 5.04 m/s | 12,805 kWh | 46 years |
Counties around Surry County
1 of the 6 closest counties is windier at turbine height; the windiest, Newport News city, averages 5.92 m/s.
- Williamsburg city, VA: 3.77 m/s, 5,477 kWh, payback over 100 years (14 mi)
- James City County, VA: 3.77 m/s, 5,477 kWh, payback over 100 years (15 mi)
- Isle of Wight County, VA: 4.22 m/s, 7,732 kWh, payback 76 years (18 mi)
- Charles City County, VA: 3.77 m/s, 5,477 kWh, payback over 100 years (19 mi)
- Prince George County, VA: 3.25 m/s, 3,402 kWh, payback over 100 years (19 mi)
- Newport News city, VA: 5.92 m/s, 19,112 kWh, payback 31 years (20 mi)
Sun versus wind in Surry County
Surry County gets 4.31 kWh of sunshine per square metre a day on average. One kW of solar panels here would make roughly 1,259 kWh a year; one kW of the turbine above makes 773. Kilowatt for kilowatt, panels make 1.6 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.