FAQs

How much electricity does one wind turbine produce?

It depends on the size of the turbine and the wind conditions. As we have very good wind conditions in New Zealand the average capacity factor of our wind turbines is around 40 – 45%. It is easy to calculate a rough approximation of the amount of electricity that a single 'average' turbine can produce in a year. In general you calculate the kWh per year and per turbine as follows:

Rating of the turbine (in MW) x 8760 (hours per year) x capacity factor x 1000 (to get into kWh, rather than MWh)

If you divide the result by the kWh used per year in an average household, you can find out how many households the turbine can service. In New Zealand the average household uses about 7,800 kWh per year.

Example:
A wind turbine of the Te Äpiti wind farm in the Manawatu Region has a rating of 1,65 MW. Te Äpiti’s capacity – the total percentage of time during the year it generates electricity – is predicted to be around 45%. How many households will a Te Äpiti wind turbine service per year?

1,65MW (rating of the turbine) x 8760 (hours per year) x 0,45 (capacity factor) x 1000 divided by 7800 kWh (average household consumption) = about 800 average households.

The Te Äpiti wind farm will have 55 turbines, so the so the approximation formula result for the whole wind farm would be a provided serving of 44 000 average households. (But notice this is just a rough approximation.)

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