Minnesota Introduces Commercial Rebates for Small Wind Turbines!

If you’re a small business in Minnesota that’s considered putting in a wind turbine, now is a great time to act! Minnesota’s Office of Energy Security recently introduced wind turbine rebates for businesses with 20 or fewer full-time employees (Non-profits also qualify assuming they meet all other criteria). The rebates are for up to 35% project costs, capped at $25,000.

Qualifying Applicants:

• Installation Date: Applicants must not begin installation of the wind turbine until after the state has approved the rebate.
  
  
• Assessment: In order to qualify, a business must first do some research to ensure they are a good candidate for generating wind energy. Typically this is done by hiring a professional wind contractor to do a site assessment, which includes measuring average wind speed at the prospective wind turbine location. The average wind speed must be at least 12 miles per hour to qualify for the new state rebates.
  
  
• Capacity: Another important qualifier is that the wind turbine must not have a capacity of more than 35 kilowatt hours at 24 miles per hour wind speed.

Read more about the new Commercial Small Wind Rebates and get the full application here >>

Just getting started and want to learn more? Check out the resources below:

• Office of Energy Security: OES also offers a list of small wind dealers and installers and a document called Can I Have a Wind Turbine? that are really helpful resources for those interested in exploring the potential for small wind.
  
  
• Clean Energy Resource Teams: CERTs provides resources on small wind that will also be helpful as you’re considering a small wind turbine:
  • Small Wind Technical Resources
  • Wind Case Studies
  • Small Wind Presentations
• Windustry: More good information for small businesses considering wind power at Windustry.org, a Minnesota nonprofit that promotes wind energy.

Residential Small Wind Rebates: There are also still resources for residents interested in installing a turbine. Click here to learn more about residential small wind rebates from the Office of Energy Security!