Sun on a roof in Idalou.

How Idalou comparesderived from the figures above

Where Idalou sits.

Idalou ranks 92nd of 1220 Texas places modeled here, at the 93rd percentile. Its 1,720 kWh per kW is above the Texas median of 1,515. The strongest months are May, April, July and the weakest are December, November, January; output peaks in May and bottoms out in December. In all, 28.6% of the year arrives in June, July and August, less than the 29.3% of the median place.

Closest modeled neighbors

• Lorenzo, 13 km east: 1,718 kWh per kW, 2 less than Idalou.
• Ransom Canyon, 14 km south: 1,759 kWh per kW, 39 more than Idalou.
• Buffalo Springs Lake, 15 km south: 1,759 kWh per kW, 39 more than Idalou.
• New Deal, 17 km northwest: 1,760 kWh per kW, 40 more than Idalou.
• Lubbock, 22 km southwest: 1,721 kWh per kW, 1 more than Idalou.
• Slaton, 24 km south: 1,742 kWh per kW, 22 more than Idalou.
• Petersburg, 24 km north: 1,747 kWh per kW, 27 more than Idalou.
• Abernathy, 25 km northwest: 1,746 kWh per kW, 26 more than Idalou.
• Ralls, 28 km east: 1,738 kWh per kW, 18 more than Idalou.

Against Fort Worth

The nearest of the six largest modeled places is Fort Worth, 414 km to the east, at 1,535 kWh per kW. Idalou models 185 kWh per kW (12.1%) above it. Idalou lies 0.88 degrees of latitude north of Fort Worth, which on sun angle alone would point the other way, so clouds, haze and the weather station's record carry the difference. The two weather stations sit a similar distance from their points (2.2 km and 1.5 km), so station distance does little to explain the gap, and the weather record does the rest.

The second-nearest large place is Dallas, 467 km east, where the same model gives 1,500 kWh per kW, so Idalou runs 220 above that figure. Against the Texas median place month by month, Idalou runs at least 2% higher in January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December.

Electricity in Lubbock CountyEIA-861

Electricity prices nearby

Providers listed in the county

• Southwestern Public Service Co: 13.94¢ per kWh, a bundled average, 223,685 residential customers across 45 counties.
• South Plains Electric Coop Inc: 11.02¢ per kWh, a bundled average, 58,726 residential customers across 18 counties.
• Lyntegar Electric Coop, Inc: 10.35¢ per kWh, a bundled average, 9,163 residential customers across 12 counties.
• City of Lubbock: 6.31¢ per kWh, delivery charges only, before the retail energy price, 94,738 residential customers across 1 county.

They are the largest bundled providers, and the largest delivery-only one, whose EIA service territory lists the county. A county can list several, and which one serves a street depends on the address, so check your bill. Priced at the first provider's average, the modeled 1,720 kWh would come to $240 per kW a year, plain multiplication and not a savings estimate.

Modeled estimateruns in your browser

Size the array, see the kWh.

Scale the Idalou model to another array size, take off extra losses for shade or dirt, and price the energy at any rate. It is arithmetic on the PVWatts output above, nothing more: not a quote, not a savings estimate and not advice.

Starting rate: the Texas residential average of 15.4¢ per kWh. At that rate the modeled output is worth $265 per kW a year as plain multiplication.