Replacing a battery is an operating expenditure that you'd have to bear even in years where the weather is crap and your chemical inputs and fuel costs go throu

Replacing a battery is an operating expenditure that you'd have to bear even in years where the weather is crap and your chemical inputs and fuel costs go through the roof. So you're paying someone relatively tech savvy to drive around to all of your fields replacing hundreds of batteries which could cost you a few thousand all in. The cost of a well drilling rig and the time in nice arable soil is going to be a few thousand dollars. So you're comparing thousands of dollars a year to thousands of dollars once.