Case study: Wind turbines

Find out how a meat processing plant determibed it would be financially better off if it invested in a wind turbine, since the expected reduction in the cost of electricity purchased from the grid over the life of the system exceeds the cost to purchase and install it.

In addition, installing a wind turbine will improve the reliability of electricity supply to the plant.

Situation

A meat processing plant owner is investigating ways to reduce the amount of electricity it purchases from the grid. The plant is located in a remote regional area with frequent supply interruptions. The site is located in an area with a good wind resource and sufficient space for a small wind turbine. The owner decides to investigate installing a small wind turbine with a system capacity of 100kW.

How does the energy-efficient (EE) system compare to the standard system?

Equipment type	Value
Cost to install ($)	$400,000
Electricity generation (kWh p.a.)	262,800
Equipment life (years)	25
Electricity cost reduction in first year from the system ($)	$52,560
Simple payback period for the system (years)	7.6