Community Wind

Judith Highlands Energy is a utility-scale, community wind project. There are many developers out there, each offering their own approach to building a wind farm, but we are the only one offering a local ownership-based model.

Community Ownership in the Wind Project

Many traditional developers will tell you that their wind developments benefit landowners by providing them with royalty or lease payments. While this does provide some economic benefit to the community there is no chance for ownership or local participation. Judith Highlands Energy offers all the benefits of a traditional business model, including lease payments and royalties, but brings even more incentives to the table. As a community-based wind energy development company, we give landowners the opportunity to influence the project through a local advisory board and a chance to share in potential profits through investment options. Judith Highlands Energy encourages and thrives on community involvement. We pride ourselves on our commitment to open, two-way communication with the whole community that will help us build the best wind project possible.

Benefits of a Community Wind Project

Aside from an ownership stake and lease payments, perhaps the most direct way that the Judith Highlands project will benefit the community is through job creation. A study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory reports that a community wind farm adds 0.4 to 1.6 construction jobs per megawatt and 0.1 - .25 operations and maintenance jobs per megawatt during operation. For Judith, that's up to 800 construction jobs and 125 long-term jobs.

A different study titled "Community Wind vs. Corporate Wind," produced at the University of Minnesota - Morris, breaks down the advantages that community projects have over corporate owned and operated developments. Job creation is a primary advantage. The study reports that community wind farms have 5 times the local value of corporate owned wind farms and 3.4 times the local job creation. Wind farms can be an incredible asset to a community, bringing in the money and the jobs that will make life easier for families in these challenging economic times.