Top 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Distributed Wind Power

Brush up on your distributed wind knowledge! The following are some key points and fun facts about the U.S. distributed wind market. This article is part of the Energy.gov series highlighting the “Top Things You Didn’t Know About Energy.”

10. Distributed wind power is used at or near where it is generated, as opposed to wind power from wholesale generation, where power is sent to consumers via transmission lines and substations. Employed by households, schools, farms, industrial facilities, and distributed energy providers, distributed wind doesn’t only refer to small-scale turbines; it includes any size turbine or array of turbines that generates power for local or on-site use.

9. People have used wind energy for more than 2,000 years to pump water and grind grain. In the 19th century, wind-powered water pumps made life possible in arid regions of the United States and Australia by tapping and bringing water to the surface from deep aquifers. Between 1850 and 1970, more than six million small wind turbines were installed in the U.S. alone, primarily for water pumping. Read more about the history of wind energy.

8. You can find wind turbines used in distributed applications all across the United States, with 92,000 wind turbines across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. From 2003 to 2023, US-distributed wind turbines reached a cumulative installed capacity of 1,110 megawatts.

7. There are many different types of distributed wind consumers, including agricultural, residential, industrial, commercial, governmental, institutional, and utility. Different turbines are deployed to meet the specific needs of each consumer. In 2023, projects for commercial customers accounted for 42% of the numbers of all projects installed, followed by agricultural customers at 34% of all 2023 projects. Institutional customers, including universities, represented approximately 11% of 2023 projects, while industrial and utility customers represented 8% and 5% of the number of projects installed, respectively.

6. Some distributed wind projects use multimegawatt turbines to power manufacturing facilities and other industrial plants, like Rivian Automotive, which installed a distributed wind turbine at the test track of their manufacturing plant in Normal, Illinois. The 2.8 MW turbine can provide 10 million kWh annually and can charge 150,000 vehicles a year, enabling over 20 million miles of wind-powered driving. 

5. Faster wind speeds mean more electricity. Wind speeds at 30 meters above the ground—an average height for distributed wind installations—can be found across the country. Check out this residential-scale wind resource map to see how strong the winds are in your area.

4. Reducing utility bills and hedging against potentially rising electricity rates are common reasons for installing distributed wind. In addition, many utilities compensate the distributed wind (or other generation) owner for excess energy generated that gets returned to the grid—a practice called “net metering.”

3. As the distributed-wind marketplace matures, third parties are providing certification of small and medium wind turbines to ensure turbines perform as advertised. The Bergey Excel 15 wind turbine achieved certification in 2021 and the Skystream 3.7 turbine was re-certified in 2023, bringing the total number of U.S. certified small wind turbine models in May 2024 to seven. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) encourages consumers who are interested in purchasing small wind turbines to buy ones that are certified to the AWEA 9.1-2009 or ANSI/ACP 101-1 standard. It should be noted that wind technologies must be installed in specific wind resources to operate as intended.

2. Distributed wind is a homegrown industry that strengthens the domestic economy. U.S. supply chain vendors provide the mechanical, electrical, tower, and blade components for small wind turbines. In 2023, U.S.-based manufacturers sold 1,994 small turbines, representing a $15.2 million investment. U.S.-based small wind turbine manufacturers and vendors support a variety of jobs, including manufacturing, retail, construction, and maintenance. 

1. Distributed wind is poised for deployment growth, in part due to funding opportunities from the Inflation Reduction Act, as well as collaboration between DOE and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). To help farmers reduce costs and increase income, DOE and the USDA launched the Rural and Agricultural Income Savings from Renewable Energy (RAISE) initiative in February 2024. DOE made a $4 million initial investment and USDA is leveraging a $303 million fund for underutilized technologies (including distributed wind) and technical assistance through its Rural Energy for America Program. 

Learn More

• Check out the Distributed Wind Market Report: 2024 Edition to learn about the distributed wind industry.
• Explore more wind facts in our Top 10 Things You Didn't Know About Wind.
• Visit energy.gov/windreport to learn about changes to the wind industry in 2023.