Private mini-wind turbines: Can it be worth it?

Two students from the master's program in industrial engineering have investigated precisely this question. As a seminar paper in the "scientific project" module, technical concepts, the legal situation and economic efficiency were examined in more detail. 

An analysis of the various influencing factors was carried out, which were then calculated and evaluated. This evaluation showed that a total of 15 of the scenarios considered had a positive net present value after a useful life of 20 years. Upon closer examination, three main factors influencing the economic viability of mini wind turbines could be identified:

• the wind speed
• the cost per kilowatt of installed capacity
• the share of self-consumption.

It can be deduced from this that for the scenarios chosen in our consideration, the economic viability of private mini-wind turbines can only be guaranteed from an average annual wind speed of 5 m/s. In addition, the turnkey costs per kilowatt of installed capacity should not exceed €7,000 and the self-consumption share should be at least 40%.

The studies have thus shown that, measured against current and forecast consumer electricity prices, and taking into account certain other parameters, private mini-wind power use can be financially worthwhile and therefore private individuals can also benefit from wind as a renewable energy source!