I didn’t pay much attention to windmills, to be honest, but all this whining and complaining by Trump has me wondering what’s so good about them.
Well, it turns out a lot. They are cheap at the margin, stable on contract, strongest when the grid is most stressed, and bank tax revenue and jobs while leaving the land working. The economics are entirely sound. The thing fighting them is jealousy and greed, not price. Trump can’t corner a wind market.
Cold snaps already have proven when wind earns its keep. Ocean winds peak in the coldest months, exactly when the New England grid is most constrained and gas is most expensive. Because the East Coast leans so heavily on volatile natural gas, adding cost-stable wind raises supply and holds bills down, and the value shows up clearly during winter electricity crunches. Vineyard Wind’s built portion saved the region roughly $2 million a day during the December 2025 cold snap, per the EDF.
That’s the spot price. The long contract makes it undeniable. Massachusetts says the power purchase agreements will save ratepayers about $1.4 billion over 20 years. And the winter case isn’t a one-off: the Acadia Center estimated offshore wind would have saved New England ratepayers at least $400 million in the winter of 2024–25 by cutting wholesale prices 11% and reducing reliance on volatile gas.
The economics scale because the fuel is free. Onshore wind and solar are among the cheapest new power sources in the US even without subsidies, per Lazard, and once a turbine is built the wind costs nothing, so wind farms undercut gas and coal on wholesale price and pull prices down for everyone. Wind already carries real load: 464.4 terawatt-hours in 2025, about 10.5% of US electricity, the largest renewable source since it passed hydro in 2019.
On the ground it pays rent and wages. Land-based wind delivered nearly $2.7 billion in state and local tax and land-lease payments last year and supports over 383,000 jobs across direct, indirect, and induced roles, with wind turbine technician the fastest-growing job in the country at 50% over the decade. Direct wind employment already runs ahead of oil and gas extraction. The land takes little: turbines and roads occupy about 2% of a project’s area, leaving 98% for farming and ranching.
What’s not to like?