Large scale technical and economical assessment of wind energy potential with a GIS tool: Case study Iowa

► The developed GIS tool defines suitable areas for wind farms and estimates their economic benefit. ► The land of the state of Iowa (US) has been used as reference case. ► The estimated average AEP and total potential installed capacity of Iowa are 914 TWh and 301 GW. ► A sensitivity analysis of the impact of the PPA on the profitability of the land has been carried out. ► A PPA of 6,5c$/kWh enables to exploit 85% of the suitable land of Iowa with an IRR greater than 15%.