Wind Energy associations around the globe admitting the fact that the amount of people making inquiries into setting up private up wind farms is on the rise. In most cases, they own land with average or high wind speeds lucrative enough to harvest.
Even average cases can generate substantial income. Most energy retailers are willing to by wind energy to increase their green energy quota and are able to market their energy “greener” to their customers.
It makes sense. Turbines are cheap to buy, to set-up and run, at least when compared to other energy sources. Even small wind farms can generate a significant return. A farm consisting of 5 small Turbines each at 130 KW can generate $100,000 in return per annum even at the most average wind speeds. There is also a political necessity for countries to be self-reliant for their energy needs. As an example, in 1970, the USA used to import 24% of their energy needs, in 1991 this number grew to 42%. Now the US imports nearly 70%! Oil tycoon Boone Pickens himself has invested millions of dollars of his own money into wind farms in the US which have yet to be built!
The sudden interest into wind farming can be likened to the rise of the cable industry in the late 1940’s. If you’re not familiar with the story, read on…
- John Walson Inventor Of Cable TV
Cable TV was born in the mountains of Pennsylvania in 1948. It was started by John Walson and Margaret Walson in the spring of 1948. They originally had an electrical appliance store in the mid-1940s to sell, install and correct General Electrical appliances in the Mahanoy Town, Pennsylvania area. In 1947, the Walsons also started selling TV sets. Mahanoy Town residents had issues receiving the three nearby Philadelphia network stations with local antennas thanks to the area’s surrounding mountains. John Walson erected an antenna on an application pole on a local mountain top that allowed him to show the TVs with good broadcasts coming from the 3 Philadelphia stations. Walson connected the mountain antennae to his appliance store thru a wire and altered signal boosters. In June of 1948, John Walson connected the mountain antennae to both his store and one or two of his customers’ houses that were found along the wire trail, beginning
So if you have access to land, money and distribution, there are huge opportunities in harvesting the wind. Farmers all over America already are subsidizing their income through leasing their land to energy companies against a share of revenue per turbine. $5,000 -$7,000 per annum per turbine are not unusual. However, it’s getting truly interesting when harvesting oneself.
Is it always feasible?
There are three key components required to assess the economic viability of a project:
1. You will need to calculate the wind speed. For more accurate information you may also choose to install an anemometer mast to gauge wind speed data over a given period.
2. You will need to calculate the distance to the nearest national grid connection point and assess the cost of this.
3. You need to ensure there are suitable access roads or take into account the cost of building them. Wind turbine towers and blades are huge components and transportation to the site needs to be fully considered.
