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East of Broken Bow | The pivot itself would run $120-$150K depending on options.
Drilling the well, the cost of the pump/column varies greatly depending on depth and size, but someone not too far from me said that cost almost $150K, with a new well, column, and gear head. Not sure if that included the power unit. Starting from scratch, it can cost $300K to go with new stuff.
Right now, it seems like electricity is the preferred way to power the pump, but out my way, 3 pahse power able to run an irrigation pump is pretty scarce locally. However, if you can get it set up reasonably, electric is low maintenance, and on the lower end as far as purchase and operating cost. Can be the cheapest if you can keep up watering with load control (when they shut you off during peak demand times).
Next most desirable right now would be Natural Gas, but like electric, it depends on where you are for availability. Near the pipeline, it can be as economical as anything.
Beyond that, you have propane or diesel. Generally speaking, diesel for higher HP uses, propane is more common for lower HP uses. Which is cheaper is anyone's guess from year to year. Some years diesel is the cheapest to run, other years the most expensive. Propane seems to be more steady as far as price, but steady doesn't mean cheapest. $2 propane equates to somewhere between $4 and $5 diesel for fuel costs.
The vast majority of pivots use electricity to drive the wheels, with a minority being hydraulic. They both have plusses and minuses to them, but I might add that you can get a hydraulic drive pivot that requires no power, using a turbine to power the hydraulic pump. With a setup like that, you can run a pivot anywhere you can get enough flow/pressure of water, without regards to if power is nearby, or distance to a power unit.
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Nebraska irrigation
