Farmers switch from diesel-powered irrigation

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Under pressure from diesel prices that have doubled in the last year, farmers in the arid regions of the United States are increasingly abandoning the fuel in favor of electricity to run their irrigation systems.

“Farmers are just switching off (their diesel engines) as fast as they can,” said Wade Hill, owner of the diesel distributor Happy Jack’s Petroleum in Brule, Nebraska.


Farmers in the dry areas of Kansas and Nebraska, as well as the Texas panhandle, depend on pumps powered by either diesel, natural gas, or electricity, to draw water out of wells to water their crops.

Until recently, diesel was often the cheapest option for fueling irrigation.

“Just a few years ago, 80 cents (per gallon) was normal. If it ever was a dollar, it wasn’t up for very long,” said Kyle Hulinski, an irrigation farmer also based in Brule, Nebraska, who uses both electric and diesel.

In the last two years, however, diesel prices have nearly tripled, and with the average retail prices for diesel now $4.79 per gallon.

With countries in South America and the Middle East buying up diesel for electricity generators as power supplies fail to keep up with rising energy demand, global demand for diesel has soared, and so have prices.

Reuters