How many homes can a wind turbine power?
Proponents often express projected output as “enough to power x homes.” According to the Energy Information Agency, the average US household uses 888 kWh per month, or 10,656 kWh per year. An average 1.5-MW turbine would produce the same amount of electric energy as that used by almost 332 households over a year. It must be remembered, though, that wind power is intermittent and variable, so a wind turbine produces power at or above its annual average only a third of the time. That is, most of the time, it is not providing its average power to its average number of homes. It must also be remembered that residential use accounts for only a third of our total electricity use.
Proponents often express projected output as “enough to power x homes.” According to the Energy Information Agency, the average US household uses 888 kWh per month, or 10,656 kWh per year. An average 1.5-MW turbine (26.9% capacity factor) would produce the same amount of electric energy as that used by almost 332 households over a year. It must be remembered, though, that wind power is intermittent and variable, so a wind turbine produces power at or above its annual average only 40% of the time. That is, most of the time, it is not providing its average power to its average number of homes. It must also be remembered that residential use accounts for only a third of our total electricity use.
