As the market and technology for wind energy has grown over the previous decade, so has the average size of wind turbines installed. According to the Annual Report on U.S. Wind Power, the average size of installed wind turbines is roughly 1.65 MW. The movement to larger machines has impacted the market for mid-sized machines, those ranging from 100-1000 kw. As the average size of turbines has increased, this has reduced the turbine inventory of mid-sized machines and created a turbine scarcity in the 100-1000kw range. Additionally, in recent years community wind projects have experienced barriers to their development, including their inability to acquire turbines, lack of supportive polices, and challenging project economics. By examining the mid-size market as a tool to community wind development, we will identify a more formalized mid-sized market and support more local ownership of wind projects.
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