A new U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) report on wind energy shows distributed wind energy—wind turbines that provide power for nearby consumers—is expanding across the nation, benefiting a wide range of organizations and communities, from large corporations to remote villages.  

The latest edition of DOE’s Distributed Wind Market Report finds that all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands have installed a combined 1,075 megawatts (MW) of distributed wind. While this is a fraction of the enormous potential for distributed wind energy, we wanted to highlight a few places you’ll find it today.  

Anheuser-Busch

Maybe you associate beer with a relaxing summer breeze as opposed to wind energy, but now you can associate it with both. California’s Anheuser-Busch plant uses an 80-meter wind turbine named Bud Light and a 91-meter wind turbine named Budweiser to help power its brewery, together providing 4.1 MW of capacity. Both turbines—and a 7-acre solar array—provide 30% of the plant’s electrical needs so it can produce around 33,000 cases of beer per day.  

Anhueser-busch trailer and workers in a carpark.

Method Cleaning Supplies 

Washing our hands has never been more important, and Chicago-based Method has met demand by producing 250,000 units of biodegradable soap every day. What’s more: The company combined cleanliness and clean energy by throwing a wind turbine into the mix. About half of Method’s eco-friendly facility is powered by a refurbished 600-kilowatt (kW) wind turbine. Soap has never been cleaner! 

Chicago-based Method building and a wind turbine.

Pitka’s Point, a Remote Alaskan Village 

A research team from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories published a study earlier this year highlighting the economic and climate benefits that wind energy provides to three remote, rural Alaskan villages: St. Mary’s, Pitka’s Point, and Mountain Village. In 2019, Alaska Village Electric Cooperative installed a 900-kW wind turbine in Pitka’s Point, partially funded through a 2016 DOE Office of Indian Energy Grant. This turbine serves all three villages and could save $5.3 million in diesel costs over its lifetime. The study makes a powerful case for the potential benefits distributed wind could offer other rural and underserved populations.  

Pitka’s Point, a remote Alaskan village in the snow.

Is Distributed Wind Right for You? 

The Distributed Wind Energy Futures Study identifies locations across the United States with high potential for distributed wind energy projects. It can serve as a resource for any company or community interested in learning if distributed wind can help them lower energy costs and transition to clean energy. The study was funded by DOE’s Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO).  

Check out WETO’s Distributed Wind Photo Gallery for case studies and more examples of distributed wind’s diversity.

Distributed Wind Photo Gallery

Aerial view of a E3120 at a small farm.
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This is an E3120 at a small farm. While Endurance is out of business, folks like Gary Harcourt and Ian Sleger of All Energy Management are busy refurbishing these machines all over the world. Location: Edgartown, Massachusetts
Photo courtesy of Gary Harcourt / Great Rock Windpower
Aerial view of a distributed wind facility.
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This Juhl project shows large wind in a distributed application. Location: Glenville, Minnesota
Photo courtesy of Juhl Energy
Aerial view of distributed wind and the mountains.
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Bergey Excel 15 repowered a defunct Proven 15 in Blowing Rock, NC, along the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Photo courtesy of Jordan Nelson / Nelson Aerial Productions
A cow and an Eocycle 25 kW on a farm.
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This is a cow...and an Eocycle 25 kW on a farm. Location: England
Photo courtesy of Eocycle Technologies Inc.
Aerial view of the Ball plant in Ohio.
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Goldwind at the Ball plant. Location: Ohio
Photo courtesy of Hank Doster / One Energy Enterprise LLC
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One of two turbines owned by Gundersen Health System and Organic Valley near Cashton, Wisconsin. The electricity from this wind farm is used by homes and businesses, as well as fed into the energy grid. Gundersen and Organic Valley are paid for the energy generated.
Photo courtesy of Roy Rakobitsch, Windsine, Inc.
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This dairy farm in Yuma, Colorado, is an agricultural facility that utilizes two 100-kilowatt Northern Power Systems wind turbines to offset high energy demand.
Photo courtesy of Trevor Atkinson, NREL 51791
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The Heritage Dairy Farm in Yuma, Colorado, is an agricultural facility that features unobstructed wind and utilizes two Northern Power Systems wind turbines.
Photo courtesy of Charles Newcomb
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Installed in 2016, this Northern Power Systems wind turbine, located in St. Francis, Kansas, will offset energy needs for the owner’s agricultural facility.
Photo courtesy of Charles Newcomb
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The Brock Environmental Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia, has two 10-kilowatt turbines installed, integrated with solar panels and geothermal wells. The center produces more electricity than it uses.
Photo courtesy of SmithGroupJJR / © Prakash Patel
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The Kodiak Electric Association installed wind turbines to help meet the renewable power goals of Kodiak Island, Alaska. There are currently six 1.5-megawatt wind turbines and two 11.5-megawatt hydroelectric turbines integrated into the community’s isolated grid system.
Photo courtesy of Dennis Schroeder, NREL
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Installed in 2008, this 900-kilowatt EWT system is located in Wray, Colorado, and offsets energy needs for the town’s school district.
Photo courtesy of Charles Newcomb
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The “Zephyr Wind Turbine” is named after the sports teams at Mahtomedi High School in St. Cloud, Minnesota This turbine not only produces electricity, but also serves as an educational tool for high school engineering, math, and science students.
Photo courtesy of Jeff Ledermann
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This 10-kilowatt distributed wind system at Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont, was developed in partnership with the Vermont Department of Public Service. This system produces 8,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity each year.
Photo courtesy of Bergey WindPower
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One of two wind turbines installed at the Triad Recycling and Energy Corporation in Tonawanda, New York. The recycling center is surrounded by open spaces and unobstructed winds, making it an ideal location for a distributed wind system.
Photo courtesy of Padma Kasathurirangan
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Two Northern Power Systems wind turbines were installed at the Triad Recycling and Energy Corporation in Tonawanda, New York, to cost-effectively offset the power required by energy-intensive recycling equipment.
Photo courtesy of Padma Kasathurirangan
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A homeowner in York, Pennsylvania, installed a 30-kilowatt solar array and a 25-kilowatt Eocycle wind turbine in 2018.
Photo courtesy of Eocycle Technologies Inc.
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A wind turbine installer climbs a 140-foot, 25-kilowatt Eocycle wind turbine in York, Pennsylvania, during construction in 2018.
Photo courtesy of Eocycle Technologies Inc.
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This Weaver 5 turbine was installed at a home in New York State.
Photo courtesy of Weaver Wind Energy
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The Gob Nob wind turbine in Farmersville, Illinois is located on the former Freeman United Crown Number 1 Coal Mine.
Photo courtesy of RECC
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The EWT DW54-900kW Gob Nob wind turbine in Farmersville, Illinois produced 2,173,088 kWh in 2017, which was distributed to 380 local coop member’s homes.
Photo courtesy of RECC
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The town of Drummond received an Oklahoma Department of Commerce Energy Efficiency and Conservation grant to install five wind turbines next to the public school. The funding was key to the successful completion of this project.
Photo courtesy of Pieter Huebner
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The Drummond turbines are installed on 120-foot self-supporting towers.
Photo courtesy of Pieter Huebner
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Under a power purchase agreement structure, this GE 1.85-megawatt wind turbine is owned and operated by an affiliate of Foundation Windpower, LLC. The project is hosted by Scheid Fmaily Wines in Salinas Valley, California, an agricultural operation that features access to an unobstructed wind resource.
Photo courtesy of Foundation Windpower, LLC
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The Scheid distributed wind installation is Foundation Windpower's third Salinas Valley project.
Photo courtesy of Foundation Windpower, LLC

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