System Benefits
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Are there enough benefits to overcome the significant costs of a wind turbine?
Simply put, yes. The long term benefits more than justify the cost of the wind turbine.
Opportunity to significantly reduce the monthly utility expenses.
You can size the turbine to fit your load. For really significant energy consumers, 600 kW may not be enough. Waterline has experience with turbines in the MW range, and can help you install large turbines, or multiple turbines to take advantage of your wind resource.
Payback periods between 8 and 18 years
It all comes down to properly sizing the turbine to fit your need. The best scenarios reduce your monthly expense, with the savings paying for the total installed cost relatively quickly. When you factor in a 20 year typical lifespan, the numbers look great. But with annual maintenance, you can keep your system generating power for years beyond the stated lifespan.
Net Present Value can range from slightly positive to $400,000 or more over 20 year period
Again, the numbers have to work. And stacked up against other capital expenditures, Wind Works! At this scale, the RECs accumulate quickly. You diversify your company’s investments, and the value of the RECs will grow as we (as a society) begin to put a price on the emissions from fossil fuel burning power plants.
Create predictability in your budget for energy costs
Know definitively what you need to budget for over the next 20 years.
PR boost from a Green Installation
Green or not, you need to make money to keep your company viable. The time is now to get headlines and accolades for your green efforts. Before long, green will not be something different, it will be standard. Get in while it can still bring people in your door.
Educational settings have the ability to tie the system into the curriculum.
Schools, universities, communities can use an installation to have positive benefits to the students and families in the area. Inspiring young minds and preparing kids for the job market of tomorrow.
Net metering agreements and ability to sell Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs)
Based on your agreement with your utility, you have the opportunity to make money in addition to saving it. Net metering can run your meter backwards and result in a check from the utility company for the excess energy exported to the grid. You don't need to lift a finger, and you can be earning your company money. There is often good wind resource at off peak hours, so you can be making a significant contribution. Add to that the REC for every 1 MWh produced, which are sold on a specialty market to other companies looking to offset their carbon emissions, and you have a recipe for revenue!