The existing vertical farming companies depend in their marketing on producing locally and being pesticide free. It’s also easier for them to hire the necessary expertise near cities than in the middle of nowhere.
The average Texas commercial electricity rate is 9.38 ¢/kWh (22% lower than the national average).
I don’t think that’s enough of a cost incentive to counteract the increased difficulty in accessing skilled labor.
I also don’t see a good idea to expect an idea like “just build solar panels” to be a great cost improvement over the existing infrastructure. Building things in remote places without roads is more expensive and factors like the dust likely do matter.
The existing vertical farming companies depend in their marketing on producing locally and being pesticide free. It’s also easier for them to hire the necessary expertise near cities than in the middle of nowhere.
According to https://www.energybot.com/electricity-rates/texas/ :
I don’t think that’s enough of a cost incentive to counteract the increased difficulty in accessing skilled labor.
I also don’t see a good idea to expect an idea like “just build solar panels” to be a great cost improvement over the existing infrastructure. Building things in remote places without roads is more expensive and factors like the dust likely do matter.