Onshore Wind Turbine Cost
wind-irena-v2026 · 3MW reference
$1401
USD per kW installed
Blade Length
65m
Hub Height
100m
Capacity Factor
35%
💨
What's Inside a Wind Turbine?
Explore blades, nacelle, tower structure, rare earth magnets & supply chain
Cost History & Outlook
Modeled benchmark history for onshore wind. Future roadmap points are shown as a dashed line.
1401 $/kW
0.0% vs 2025
Historical benchmark
Predicted / roadmap
Solid line shows modeled benchmark history up to the selected year. Dashed line shows roadmap or forecast points beyond the selected year.
Key Stats
Model
wind-irena-v2026
Live coverage
38% live
System cost
$1401/kW
Reference
62% reference
Conversion Index
Finished wind turbine cost divided by a bottom-up material and equipment basket from the wind model. The remainder reflects fabrication, transport, erection, and other conversion layers.
1.2x
finished cost / base cost
Bottom-up material basket
$1199 /kW
Finished Cost
$1401 /kW
Fabrication / install layer
$202 /kW
Base Share
85.6%
Biggest driver: Tower Steel - Tower ($680 /kW)
38% live · 62% reference
Cost Waterfall
Stage Breakdown
blade13.6%
$190.0
carbon_fiber_spar$75.0
fiberglass_shell$60.0
blade_mold_labor$25.0
resin_adhesive$18.0
blade_transport$12.0
nacelle17.7%
$248.5
permanent_magnets$62.5
gearbox_bearings$55.0
generator_copper$48.0
power_electronics$35.0
nacelle_housing$28.0
tower54.2%
$759.5
tower_steel$680.0
tower_fabrication$45.0
tower_transport$30.0
tower_galvanizing$4.5
electrical3.4%
$48.0
internal_cabling$22.0
substation_share$18.0
scada_controls$8.0
installation11.1%
$155.0
foundation$65.0
crane_erection$45.0
civil_works$30.0
commissioning$15.0
Material Breakdown
69.4% of Total Installed Cost| Material | Price | $/kW | Share | +10% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fe Steel (HRC) Tower structure (80% of mass) | $1,130 | $680.0000 | 48.5% | +$68.00000 | |
| CF Carbon Fiber Blade spar caps (large turbines) | $15.00 | $75.0000 | 5.4% | +$7.50000 | |
| Nd Neodymium Oxide Permanent magnets (direct-drive generator) | $125.00 | $62.5000 | 4.5% | +$6.25000 | |
| FG Fiberglass / Epoxy Blade shell, nacelle cover | $4.00 | $60.0000 | 4.3% | +$6.00000 | |
| Cu Copper Generator windings, cables | $6.47 | $48.0000 | 3.4% | +$4.80000 | |
| Al Aluminum Nacelle housing | $1.60 | $28.0000 | 2.0% | +$2.80000 | |
| Dy Dysprosium Oxide High-temperature magnet stabilizer | $285.00 | $14.2500 | 1.0% | +$1.42500 | |
| Zn Zinc Galvanizing / anti-corrosion coating | $1.28 | $4.5000 | 0.3% | +$0.45000 | |
| Total Materials | $972.2500 | 69.4% | |||