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Should I Lease My Land for Wind Turbines?

should i lease my land for wind turbines?

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Published date:

February 17, 2021

Last updated date:

February 17, 2021

By Manny Manriquez

by Caroline Kirby For the last few years, farmers and rural landowners have been hosting wind projects in order to make some extra money and utilize their vacant land. If you're interested in leasing your land for wind turbines or curious if your land would even qualify, here's a quick overview of the most important considerations. If you have large parcels of land in a windy area, then you may be in a great position to host windmills or turbines on your property as a way to rake in some extra cash and help produce renewable energy. While the industry is evolving and requires some flexibility, as of today, there are only a few simple requirements that your land must meet to qualify.

How do I know if my land is fit to host wind turbines?

Well, the best way to tell if your land is appropriate to host wind turbines is to see if any other turbines exist in the area. If so, chances are your land would definitely be able to host! However, there are a few other considerations of what wind project developers are typically looking for: • An annual average wind speed of at 9 mph (or 4 meters per second) for small wind turbines and closer to 13 mph (5.8 m/s) for utility-scale turbines. • Land in open plains and water, smooth, rounded hilltops, or even in mountain gaps that funnels and intensifies wind. • Higher elevations tend to work best for electricity generation. • Want to quickly determine if your land may be a good match? The top states for wind energy are consistently Texas, Iowa, Oklahoma, California, Kansas, Illinois, Colorado, Minnesota, Oregon, and North Dakota. While these factors certainly aren't the only ones developers are interested in, they can be a guiding factor in helping you determine if hosting wind is even viable for your property. If you think your land meets the requirements above, there are still a few other things that you can do to help make your land even more attractive to potential developers.

Make your land stand out to wind developers

The good news is that if your land is suitable for wind, then a developer will likely reach out to you as they have sought out sites based on their own analysis. If you want to position yourself for a better lease agreement, here are some of the extra features to bring to your property. • Vehicle access: More good news here, even if your land isn't perfect for hosting a wind turbine, it could be beneficial to the development of a wind farm. Developers often need access roads so that the large trucks and construction cranes can get to and from the project site. • Electric grid access: Developers want their turbines to be reasonably close to a local power grid so that the energy produced can be transferred to communities that utilize renewable energy. However, there have been some advancements made in energy transmission tech, so even if your property is quite far from civilization, then your land may still be eligible. Do a little research and see what developers are known in your area. This may be large corporations or smaller businesses from the region. If you're interested in utilizing your vacant land for something different while earning a little extra money, then leasing your land for wind could be a good fit. You can easily list your land or look for vacant properties here on LandHub.com. Like this article? Please feel free to share or post a link on your site: https://www.landhub.com/land-news/should-i-lease-my-land-for-wind-turbines/
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