Archives: Press Release

Drax Group CEO responds to National Grid ESO’s Future Energy Scenarios 2021

12 July 2021

Press releases
Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner in the control room at Drax Power Station

“The critical role that BECCS at Drax will play in decarbonising the economy and reaching net zero is made clear by the National Grid Future Energy Scenarios report. Drax stands ready to invest in this vital technology – with the right support from government we could be permanently removing eight million tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere each year by 2030 – playing a significant part in the UK’s efforts to address the climate crisis and keep the lights on, whilst creating jobs and clean growth.”

View the full report here. 

Schoolchildren rise to Drax’s recycled robot challenge

Press releases
Children with robots

Primary school pupils have built their own robots from recycled materials as part of an initiative developed by Drax Power Station, near Selby in North Yorkshire, to boost STEM education and skills.

The Visitor Centre Team at Drax Power Station has worked with colleagues at Doncaster College and University Centre to develop the STEM box project, an engaging activity for students to take part in relating to the subject areas of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths.

A group of students aged between seven and ten at Sunnyfields Primary School in Scawthorpe, have been provided with individual activity boxes containing a range of learning materials, games and resources they will need to build their robots, the focus of which is on recycling and forms part of their school curriculum.

During the Covid-19 lockdown, many pupils have struggled to engage with home-schooling and projects like the STEM box provide a valuable opportunity to transition back into the school routine and get students enthusiastic about learning again.

The robots are made from recyclable materials that can be found around the house such as bottles, tin cans and cardboard and have been designed to carry out recycling tasks such as having magnetic hands to pick up metal, or built-in compartments to store paper.

Students also received a video recorded by the visitor centre guides to provide them with instructions. Once covid restrictions are relaxed, they intend to deliver this introduction in person in schools, as well as providing a visit to the power station as part of the project to help students understand the important role that recycling plays there.

Drax Group’s Head of Sustainable Business, Alan Knight, said:

“By providing schools with these resources we hope to further students’ understanding of the importance of recycling and hopefully fire up their imaginations and inspire them to study STEM subjects by showing them the wide range of career options that are available.”

Liane Clark from Children’s University at Doncaster College said, “Children’s University (CU) are excited to share this fantastic project with our CU schools to create an enriching learning experience that will inspire our future working generation. Our partnership with Drax has enabled a unique learning opportunity, which we hope will encourage children to deepen their knowledge and have a positive impact on their future.”

Children at Sunnyfields Primary School are the first to take part in the project which the Drax Power Station Visitor Centre Team plan to roll out to other schools across the region after the summer holidays.

Teacher Chloe Hoogwerf said:

“The students had a great time taking part in the STEM box programme, learning about Drax, and building the recycling robots. Activities like these are so important as it really brings the subject to life and gets students enthusiastic about STEM, as well as encouraging them to start thinking about careers they might enjoy in the future.”

Drax has a long tradition of supporting education and helping to inspire the next generation of engineers by encouraging interest in STEM subjects. Earlier this year, Drax announced its Mobilising a Million ambition which aims to increase social mobility and provide levelling up opportunities for a million people by 2025.

As well as the STEM box project, during the Covid pandemic Drax launched a virtual work experience programme, renewed its partnership with Selby College with a £180,000 contribution to support skills and training, and provided over 1,200 laptops with free internet access to school pupils across the country to ensure that students don’t miss out on valuable learning during the lockdown.

Pic caption: Sunnyfields Primary School Teacher Chloe Hoogwerf with Key Stage 2 pupils Oliver, Lilly and Lilly-Mae

ENDS

Media contacts:

Ben Wicks
Media Manager
E: [email protected]
T: 07761525662

Megan Hopgood
Media and PR Intern
E: [email protected]
T: 07936350175

About Drax

Drax Group’s purpose is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future and in 2019 announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030, using Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) technology.

Its 3,400 employees operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production and supply to third parties.

Power generation:

Drax owns and operates a portfolio of renewable electricity generation assets in England and Scotland. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies five percent of the country’s electricity needs.

Having converted Drax Power Station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal it has become the UK’s biggest renewable power generator and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe. It is also where Drax is piloting the groundbreaking negative emissions technology BECCS within its CCUS (Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage) Incubation Area.

Its pumped storage, hydro and energy from waste assets in Scotland include Cruachan Power Station – a flexible pumped storage facility within the hollowed-out mountain Ben Cruachan.

Pellet production and supply:

Drax owns and has interests in 17 pellet mills in the US South and Western Canada which have the capacity to manufacture 4.9 million tonnes of compressed wood pellets (biomass) a year. The pellets are produced using materials sourced from sustainably managed working forests and are supplied to third party customers in Europe and Asia for the generation of renewable power.

Drax’s pellet mills supply around 20% of the biomass used at its own power station in North Yorkshire, England to generate flexible, renewable power for the UK’s homes and businesses.

Customers: 

Through its two B2B energy supply brands, Haven Power and Opus Energy, Drax supplies energy to 250,000 businesses across Britain.

For more information visit www.drax.com

Drax launches £500 grants for education and skills charities in Scotland

29 June 2021

Press releases

Drax’s Charity Committee has a dedicated fund for supporting good causes local to its operations in Scotland, which include Cruachan Power Station, Daldowie Fuel Plant and the Lanark and Galloway Hydro Schemes.

It accepts funding requests that will have a positive impact on the local community by supporting the company’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) education outreach work and improving skills and employability.

Last year, Drax provided a £636,000 support package for communities which included donating laptops to schools to support students with home schooling, free energy for small care homes and launched virtual tours and work experience programmes to keep STEM learning opportunities open during the pandemic.

Alan Knight, Group Director of Sustainability and Chair of the Charity Committee, said:

“Drax has a long history of supporting the communities local to its operations. It’s vital that businesses like Drax play their part in boosting education and employability so people are equipped with the relevant skills to support a green economy.

“We welcome applications from organisations which share Drax’s aims of boosting social mobility or improving the local area.”

Lochnell Primary School in Benderloch, Argyll, recently received support from the Drax Charity Committee. Headteacher Louise Chisholm said:

“We are grateful to Drax for its ongoing support for education and skills – it makes a real difference to the students’ experience which is so important – especially during the challenges of the last year. We’ve used the latest funding to further develop our children’s curiosity and skills in computing and science by purchasing Lego WeDo kits which allow the children to build and program their own projects.”

Charities and community organisations local to Drax’s operations which support STEM and education outreach, skills and employability, or which work to improve local communities, can apply for up to £500 per year from Drax.

Drax recently began the planning process to build a new underground pumped hydro storage power station that will more than double the electricity generating capacity of the iconic ‘Hollow Mountain’ Cruachan facility. The project will support almost 900 jobs in rural areas across Scotland during construction and will provide critical storage capacity needed to support a net zero power system.

To request an application form, email [email protected] or fill out an enquiry form on the Drax website.

Main image caption: In April, Drax donated 60 laptops to schools across Scotland

ENDS

Media contacts:

Aidan Kerr
Drax Group Media Manager
E: [email protected]
T: 07849 090 368

Megan Hopgood
Media Intern
E: [email protected]
T: 07936350175

About Drax

Drax Group’s purpose is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future and in 2019 announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030, using Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) technology.

Its 3,400 employees operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production and supply to third parties.

Power generation:

Drax owns and operates a portfolio of renewable electricity generation assets in England and Scotland. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies five percent of the country’s electricity needs.

Having converted Drax Power Station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal it has become the UK’s biggest renewable power generator and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe. It is also where Drax is piloting the groundbreaking negative emissions technology BECCS within its CCUS (Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage) Incubation Area.

Its pumped storage, hydro and energy from waste assets in Scotland include Cruachan Power Station – a flexible pumped storage facility within the hollowed-out mountain Ben Cruachan.

Pellet production and supply:

Drax owns and has interests in 17 pellet mills in the US South and Western Canada which have the capacity to manufacture 4.9 million tonnes of compressed wood pellets (biomass) a year. The pellets are produced using materials sourced from sustainably managed working forests and are supplied to third party customers in Europe and Asia for the generation of renewable power.

Drax’s pellet mills supply around 20% of the biomass used at its own power station in North Yorkshire, England to generate flexible, renewable power for the UK’s homes and businesses.

Customers: 

Through its two B2B energy supply brands, Haven Power and Opus Energy, Drax supplies energy to 250,000 businesses across Britain.

For more information visit www.drax.com

Progress Power prepares for development commencement

28 June 2021

Press releases

Work has started to prepare the Eye Airfield Site in Suffolk so that development of Progress Power – a rapid response power station, can get underway later this year.

The work is in accordance with the conditions of the Development Consent Order extension granted by the Secretary of State the State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 27 July 2020.

As part of the plans, work to erect a new perimeter fence around the site will begin on 28 July 2021 ahead of work to build the new power station, which will play an important role in supporting the electricity system as more wind and solar power come online.

Copies of the application, the Secretary of State’s decision and accompanying documents, plans and maps are available for inspection here.

You can also view the application and its accompanying documents, plans and maps via the Planning Inspectorate’s website: https://infrastructure.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/projects/eastern/progress-power-station/?ipcsection=overview.

If you require a hard copy of the application and its accompanying documents, plans and maps, please contact Progress Power Limited at [email protected] or on 020 8392 8250.

ENDS

Media contacts:

Aidan Kerr
Media Manager
E: [email protected]
T: 07849090368

About Drax

Drax Group’s purpose is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future and in 2019 announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030, using Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) technology.

Its 2,900 employees operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production.

Power generation:

Drax owns and operates a portfolio of renewable electricity generation assets in England and Scotland. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies five percent of the country’s electricity needs.

Having converted two thirds of Drax Power Station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal it has become the UK’s biggest renewable power generator and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe. It is also where Drax is piloting the groundbreaking negative emissions technology BECCS within its CCUS (Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage) Incubation Area.

Its pumped storage, hydro and energy from waste assets in Scotland include Cruachan Power Station – a flexible pumped storage facility within the hollowed-out mountain Ben Cruachan.

Customers:

Through its two B2B energy supply brands, Haven Power and Opus Energy, Drax supplies energy to 250,000 businesses across Britain.

Pellet production:

Drax owns and operates three pellet mills in the US South which manufacture compressed wood pellets (biomass) produced from sustainably managed working forests. These pellet mills supply around 20% of the biomass used by Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire to generate flexible, renewable power for the UK’s homes and businesses.

For more information visit www.drax.com

Drax Group CEO responds to CCC’s Progress Report to Parliament

24 June 2021

Press releases
Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner in the control room at Drax Power Station

“Today’s CCC report is another reminder that if the UK is to meet its ambitious climate targets there is an urgent need to scale up bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS). As the world’s leading generator and supplier of sustainable bioenergy there is no better place to deliver BECCS at scale than at Drax in the UK.

“We are ready to invest in and deliver this world-leading green technology, which would support clean growth in the north of England, create tens of thousands of jobs and put the UK at the forefront of combatting climate change.”

Notes to editors

  • The first BECCS unit at Drax could be operational as soon as 2027, with Drax capturing and storing at least 8 million tonnes of CO2 a year by 2030.
  • BECCS at Drax will permanently remove millions of tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere and help the UK’s most carbon intensive industrial area to decarbonise quickly and cost effectively.
  • Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGRs) vital for net zero with BECCS requiring a commercial scale plant by the late 2020s underpinned by a tranmsport and storage (T&S) network.
  • Progress towards delivering GGR targets will be reported in next year’s Climate Change Committee progress report and, in the meantime, over the next year BEIS should develop policies on governance and support mechanisms to enable GGR scale up in the 2020s.
  • The CCC’s 2021 Progress Report to Parliament.

CCC Progress report summary

  • CCC Progress Report“Our assessment is that both engineered Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGR) and land-based removals, will be essential for reaching Net Zero.”
  • “A small number of BECCS and DACCS test facilities are presently in operation worldwide. Investment in research and development needs to be complemented with policy design to support engineered GGR scale-up during the mid-to-late 2020s.”
  • “A key milestone on the Sixth Carbon Budget pathway is progress towards the commissioning of the first commercial-scale BECCS plant in the late 2020s. This will need to be underpinned by the construction of CO2 pipeline and storage infrastructures as part of the wider establishment of CCS in the early 2020s”
  • “Progress towards this underpinning infrastructure delivery and the development of support policies for GGR deployment will be considered in next year’s Progress Report, in 2022.”
  • “The Net Zero Strategy should set out expected amounts and timings of land-based and engineered removals (i.e. bioenergy with CCS (BECCS) and direct air carbon capture and storage (DACCS)) in contributing to meeting the Sixth Carbon Budget and the Net Zero target. These should avoid over-reliance on these solutions.”
  • “Building on the results of the BEIS GGR consultation, policy on governance and support mechanisms should be developed over the next year in order to enable GGR scale-up during the mid-late 2020s. This should include enabling domestic engineered removals to contribute to UK carbon budgets and Net Zero, establishing GGR monitoring, verification and reporting structures that ensure that GGR is sustainable and verifiable, and setting out support mechanisms that align with the expectations for the role and timing of GGR contribution to UK emissions reductions.”

 

Drax kickstarts planning process to expand its iconic ‘Hollow Mountain’ Cruachan Power Station

Press releases
  • The decision to seek planning permission to expand pumped storage hydro at Cruachan demonstrates Drax’s commitment to Scotland and is a landmark moment in unlocking the vast renewable resources needed in the UK ahead of COP 26 in Glasgow.
  • Pumped storage hydro is a critical technology which enables more renewable power and supports Scotland’s electricity system, helping the country towards its target of reaching net zero by 2045 five years before the UK as a whole.
  • Work to build Drax’s new pumped storage hydro power station could begin as soon as 2024, removing 1 million tonnes of rock from inside Ben Cruachan and creating hundreds of jobs across rural Scotland.

Renewable energy company Drax Group is kickstarting the planning process to build a new underground pumped storage hydro power station – more than doubling the electricity generating capacity at its iconic Cruachan facility in Scotland.

The project, announced as the UK prepares to host the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, will support almost 900 jobs in rural areas across Scotland during construction and will provide critical storage capacity needed to support a net zero power system.

The 600MW power station will be located inside Ben Cruachan – Argyll’s highest mountain – and increase the site’s total capacity to 1.04GW. The new power station would be built within a new, hollowed-out cavern which would be large enough to fit Big Ben on its side, to the east of Drax’s existing 440MW pumped storage hydro station. More than a million tonnes of rock would be excavated to create the cavern and other parts of the power station. The existing upper reservoir, which can hold 2.4 billion gallons of water, has the capacity to serve both power stations.

An artist's impression of Cruachan 2 (top) and the existing Cruachan Power Station (bottom)

An artist’s impression of Cruachan 2 (top) and the existing Cruachan Power Station (bottom) [click to view/download]

Like Drax’s existing site, the new station will be able to provide lifeline stability services to the power system alongside acting like a giant water battery. By using reversible turbines to pump water from Loch Awe to the upper reservoir on the mountainside, the station can store power from wind farms when supply outstrips demand.

The stored water would then be released back through the turbines to generate power quickly and reliably when demand increases. This will help to cut energy costs by reducing the need for wind farms to be paid to turn off when they are generating excess power. The new station would have the capacity to generate enough power for around a million homes.

Will Gardiner, Drax Group CEO, said:

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner in the control room at Drax Power Station

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner [Click to view/download]

“This is an exciting and important project which underlines Drax’s commitment to tackling the climate crisis and supporting the energy system as it continues to decarbonise. Our plans to expand Cruachan will unlock more renewable electricity to power homes and businesses across the country, and support hundreds of new jobs in rural Scotland.

“Last year, the UK’s lack of energy storage capacity meant wind farms had to be paid to turn off and we lost out on enough renewable power to supply a million homes. We need to stop renewable power from going to waste by storing it, and Drax is ready to move mountains to do just that.”

Turbine hall, Cruachan Power Station

Turbine hall, Cruachan Power Station [click to view/download]

Drax’s decision to pursue planning approval has been welcomed by the Hollow Mountain’s local MP and MSP.

Brendan O’Hara, Argyll & Bute MP, said:

“I am delighted that Drax is progressing plans to expand the Ben Cruachan site. This will support 900 rural jobs and create a pumped storage facility that will be able to provide enough renewable energy to power a million homes while helping us reach our 2045 net zero target, it is great news for this area and for Scotland.”

Jenni Minto, Argyll & Bute MSP, said:

“Investment in new pumped storage hydro capacity could greatly enhance the flexibility and resilience of the electricity network and help us move towards meeting our ambitious global climate change targets. In the run-up to COP26 in Glasgow, it’s more vital than ever that we come up with innovative solutions to the climate emergency and ensure that future generations to reap the rewards of Scotland’s vast renewable potential.”

In order to deploy this critical technology, Drax must secure consent under Section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 from Scottish Ministers – a process which takes around one year to complete from the application’s submission.

Alongside a successful Section 36 application, the project will also require an updated policy and market support mechanism from the UK Government. The existing lack of a framework for large-scale, long-duration storage and flexibility technologies means that private investment cannot currently be secured in new pumped storage hydro projects, with no new plants built anywhere in the UK since 1984 despite their critical role in decarbonisation.

The first phase of the Section 36 application process includes public consultation this summer, when people can provide comments on Drax’s proposals for Cruachan via the project website from 1 July. Further consultation events are planned for later in the year, and an application is then expected to be submitted to Scottish Ministers in early 2022.

ENDS

Media contact:

Aidan Kerr
Media Manager (Generation)
E: [email protected]
T: 07849090368

Editor’s Notes

  • The local community can view early stage proposals for the project, ask questions and leave feedback for Drax at a virtual public exhibition which begins on 1 July at the project’s website: cruachanexpansion.com
  • With Section 36 consent from the Scottish Government, and an updated revenue stabilisation mechanism from the UK Government, work to build the new pumped storage hydro power station could get underway in 2024, with it becoming operational, supplying flexible power to the grid, in 2030.
  • No investment decision has yet been taken and development remains subject to the right regulatory framework with the UK government.
  • A recent report by the Renewable Energy Association (REA) highlighted the policy barriers to deploying long-duration energy storage and suggested ways to address these barriers such as through the introduction of an income floor.
  • Analysis by pumped storage hydro experts Stantec for Drax shows 876 jobs will be supported directly and indirectly during construction.
  • Built on the shores of Loch Awe in Argyll in the 1960s, Cruachan was the first reversible pumped storage hydro system of its scale to be built in the world.
  • The upper reservoir on the mountainside can store 11.1 million cubic metres (2.4bn gallons) – that’s enough to fill 4,440 Olympic swimming pools.
  • Independent analysis by Lane, Clark and Peacock (LCP) found the UK curtailed 3.6TWh of wind power last year, enough renewable electricity to supply around a million homes.
  • A separate independent report by academics from Imperial College London recently found that just 4.5 GW of new pumped storage hydro could save up to £690m per year in energy system costs by 2050.
  • Drax’s Scottish operations include hydro facilities in Galloway and Lanark and a biomass-from-waste plant at Daldowie, near Glasgow, along with Cruachan, all of which were acquired at the beginning of 2019.
  • Main photo of Cruachan Power Station dam and reservoir [view/download]
  • Cruachan 2 video animation [view and download
  • in 1:1 (square)] or [view and download in 16:9 (widescreen)]

About Drax

Drax Group’s purpose is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future and in 2019 announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030, using Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) technology.

Its 3,400 employees operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production and supply to third parties.

Power generation:

Drax owns and operates a portfolio of renewable electricity generation assets in England and Scotland. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies five percent of the country’s electricity needs.

Having converted Drax Power Station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal it has become the UK’s biggest renewable power generator and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe. It is also where Drax is piloting the groundbreaking negative emissions technology BECCS within its CCUS (Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage) Incubation Area.

Its pumped storage, hydro and energy from waste assets in Scotland include Cruachan Power Station – a flexible pumped storage facility within the hollowed-out mountain Ben Cruachan.

Pellet production and supply:

Drax owns and has interests in 17 pellet mills in the US South and Western Canada which have the capacity to manufacture 4.9 million tonnes of compressed wood pellets (biomass) a year. The pellets are produced using materials sourced from sustainably managed working forests and are supplied to third party customers in Europe and Asia for the generation of renewable power.

Drax’s pellet mills supply around 20% of the biomass used at its own power station in North Yorkshire, England to generate flexible, renewable power for the UK’s homes and businesses.

Customers:

Through its two B2B energy supply brands, Haven Power and Opus Energy, Drax supplies energy to 250,000 businesses across Britain.

For more information visit www.drax.com

Phoenix BioPower explores next generation BECCS technology for Drax Group

18 June 2021

Press releases
Sustainable biomass wood pellet storage domes at Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire
  • Phoenix BioPower’s study will investigate how the latest energy efficient turbine technology could reduce the costs of new build bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) plants.

Swedish-based Phoenix BioPower and renewable energy company Drax Group, a global leader in sustainable biomass power generation, are exploring ways to drive down the costs of second-generation bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) technology.

The feasibility study by Phoenix BioPower will look at how energy-efficient gas turbines could make new-build BECCS projects more cost effective by generating 50% more power with the same amount of fuel, when powering a 300MWe biomass plant with integrated carbon capture and storage.

The innovative top cycle turbines are up to 15 percentage points more efficient with BECCS than existing technologies used in power stations and could also be used with other renewable technologies, to support decarbonising energy systems globally.

Henrik Båge, CEO of Phoenix BioPower said:

“Working alongside Drax, a global leader in sustainable biomass power generation and BECCS, gives us an exciting opportunity to explore the next generation of negative emissions technologies together with our high-efficiency biopower technology. We look forward to working with the world-class engineers at Drax on this study to further develop these essential technologies.”

By integrating pressurised biomass gas into the turbine, instead of high-pressure steam, Biomass-fired Top Cycle turbines can almost double of the electrical efficiency from biomass compared to the traditional steam cycle.

The study will also investigate how the biomass-fired top cycle gas turbines can be utilised for other renewable technologies such as hydrogen combustion and production. The study will be based on results from Phoenix’s test facilities in Sweden and Germany.

Drax is already the largest decarbonisation project in Europe having converted its power station near Selby in North Yorkshire to use sustainable biomass instead of coal. By using the vital negative emissions technology BECCS at the site, Drax aims to go further, by becoming a carbon negative company by 2030.

Jason Shipstone, Drax Group Chief Innovation Officer, said:

“Negative emissions technologies such as BECCS will play a crucial role in the global fight against climate change and at Drax we’re planning to install this technology at our existing power station in the UK.

“This partnership with Phoenix BioPower is one of a number of options we’re investigating as part of our long-term innovation programme, which will enable Drax to understand the potential of future technological advances, so we can continue to innovate, develop and grow as a business.”

ENDS

Media contacts

Phoenix BioPower

Henrik Båge
+46 (0)734 23 22 55
[email protected]

Drax

Ben Wicks (Media Manager)
+44 7761 525 662
[email protected] 

Editor’s Notes

The work by Phoenix BioPower with Drax will:

  • Develop a feasibility study to identify how biomass-fired top cycle turbines can be integrated into new build BECCS power stations.
  • The study will be based on results from two of Phoenix Biopower’s test sites in Sweden (biomass gasification) and Germany (ultra-wet gas turbine combustion) and will create a model based on data provided by both companies.
  • The study will also investigate how gas turbines can also be utilised for other renewable technologies such as hydrogen combustion and production.

About BECCS at Drax:

  • Drax aims to deploy BECCS on two of its biomass generating units by 2030 capturing and permanently storing up to eight million tonnes of CO2 a year – a significant proportion of the negative emissions the Climate Change Committee says are needed in order for the UK to reach its climate targets.
  • The IPCC, UK Climate Change Committee and National Grid’s Future Energy Scenarios report all recognise the vital role biomass and BECCS will play in the UK meeting its legally binding net zero by 2050 target.
  • The government’s legally binding commitment to cut emissions by 78% by 2035, in line with the Climate Change Committee’s 6th carbon budget advice, also reinforces the vital role of BECCS to delivery net zero in the UK.
  • BECCS is the only negative emissions technology that generates power whilst also permanently removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

About Phoenix BioPower

Phoenix BioPower, founded in 2016, develops a new technology for high efficiency biopower and a novel gas turbine cycle for ultra-wet combustion enabling the energy transition to plannable renewables and utility scale negative emissions.

The BTC technology

The biopower technology, BTC – Biomass-fired Top Cycle, is based on the integration of pressurised biomass gasification and gas turbine combustion, enabling a near doubling of the electrical efficiency from biomass compared to the traditional steam cycle. The company targets to commission a first full-scale plant by end of 2028.

The Top Cycle gas turbine

The novel gas turbine technology Top Cycle is based on the principle of replacing excess air with steam, enabling higher power generation capabilities at lower CAPEX and high value waste heat to be used for other purposes, like CCS or District Heating, without affecting the power cycle.

The ultra-wet conditions in combustion enable very low NOx emissions, especially with Hydrogen combustion, and very stable flame conditions.

Phoenix BioPower combined heat and power (CHP) plan without carbon capture technology

Phoenix BioPower combined heat and power (CHP) plan without carbon capture technology [click to view/download]

For more information, visit www.phoenixbiopower.com

Customers

Phoenix BioPower is in a pre-commercial phase and will offer turn-key solutions on commercial terms to end users and plant operators with partners to assure delivery, warranties and stable operation.

About Drax

Drax Group’s purpose is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future and in 2019 announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030, using Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) technology.

Its 3,400 employees operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production and supply to third parties.

Power generation:

Drax owns and operates a portfolio of renewable electricity generation assets in England and Scotland. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies five percent of the country’s electricity needs.

Having converted Drax Power Station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal it has become the UK’s biggest renewable power generator and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe. It is also where Drax is piloting the groundbreaking negative emissions technology BECCS within its CCUS (Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage) Incubation Area.

Its pumped storage, hydro and energy from waste assets in Scotland include Cruachan Power Station – a flexible pumped storage facility within the hollowed-out mountain Ben Cruachan.

Pellet production and supply:

Drax owns and has interests in 17 pellet mills in the US South and Western Canada which have the capacity to manufacture 4.9 million tonnes of compressed wood pellets (biomass) a year. The pellets are produced using materials sourced from sustainably managed working forests and are supplied to third party customers in Europe and Asia for the generation of renewable power.

Drax’s pellet mills supply around 20% of the biomass used at its own power station in North Yorkshire, England to generate flexible, renewable power for the UK’s homes and businesses.

Customers:

Through its two B2B energy supply brands, Haven Power and Opus Energy, Drax supplies energy to 250,000 businesses across Britain.

For more information visit www.drax.com

Scotland Office Minister visits iconic ‘Hollow Mountain’ Cruachan Power Station

Press releases
Drax Group’s Ian Kinnaird (L) with UK Government Minister for Scotland, David Duguid (R), at the mouth to the access tunnel to Cruachan Power Station which stretches 1km into the heart of Ben Cruachan.

Cruachan is an underground pumped hydro storage power station built inside a hollowed-out cavern 1km inside Ben Cruachan – Argyll’s highest mountain. Despite construction starting in 1959, its reversible turbines are still at the cutting edge of energy storage technology, enabling the plant to act like a giant water battery.

UK Government Minister for Scotland, David Duguid (L), and Drax Group’s Ian Kinnaird (R) with Cruachan Power Station’s generating units behind them.

UK Government Minister for Scotland, David Duguid (L), and Drax Group’s Ian Kinnaird (R) with Cruachan Power Station’s generating units behind them [click to view/download]

Its turbines pump water from Loch Awe to an upper reservoir on the mountainside to store excess power from the grid. The stored water is then released back through the turbines to generate power quickly and reliably when demand increases. This process helps stop wind farms being paid to turn off when they are generating excess power, helping Scotland to be greener whilst cutting household energy bills.

As part of the visit, Drax Group’s Scottish Assets & Generation Engineering Director, Ian Kinnaird, also outlined the company’s exciting work on plans to build a new second underground pumped hydro storage power station at the Cruachan complex.

He said:

“The UK has led the world in the transition from fossil fuels to renewable power, and Scotland has been at the forefront of this renewables revolution.

“Drax wants to go even further and unlock Scotland’s full renewable potential by expanding the iconic Cruachan pumped hydro storage plant in Argyll. These innovative plants act like giant water batteries soaking up excess wind and solar power so our homes and businesses can use more green energy when we need it most.”

Cruachan Power Station Turbine Hall (Click to view/download)

The construction of a second underground power station at Cruachan would be one of the largest infrastructure projects in Scotland in recent decades, creating jobs and bringing much needed investment to Argyll. As Glasgow prepares to host COP26 in November, Cruachan shows how countries around the world can harness their full renewable potential, create jobs and cut energy bills for consumers.

When all four of its generating units are operating at maximum capacity, the plant can supply enough flexible power for around 800,000 homes.

UK Government Minister for Scotland, David Duguid, said:

“It was fascinating to tour the underground facility and see first-hand how it produces high volumes of power in such an environmentally-friendly way.

“We need to embrace the kind of technology employed at Drax and the next Smart Systems and Flexibility Plan, due for publication shortly, will outline steps to remove barriers to smart technologies. It’s all in line with the UK Government’s ambitious climate and decarbonisation commitments as we strive to cut our emissions by nearly 80 per cent by 2035.”

Drax Group’s Ian Kinnaird (L) with UK Government Minister for Scotland, David Duguid (R), at Cruachan Power Station.

Drax Group’s Ian Kinnaird (L) with UK Government Minister for Scotland, David Duguid (R), at Cruachan Power Station [click to view/download]

Drax acquired Cruachan alongside the Galloway and Lanark hydro schemes in 2019, helping to make the company a leading provider of flexible, renewable power generation.

ENDS

Media contacts:

Aidan Kerr
Drax Group Media Manager
E: [email protected]
T: 07849 090 368

Laura Davidson
Office of Scretrary of State for Scotland
E: [email protected]

Editor’s Notes

  • Pumped hydro storage power stations act like giant water batteries, storing excess energy when there is an oversupply of power and then releasing when the country needs it most.
  • This is especially useful in supporting wind and solar generation, storing excess renewable power to be used later instead of going to waste.
  • Despite being a key supporting pillar for intermittent generation from wind and solar power, no new pumped storage plants have been built in Britain since 1984.
  • Drax is currently progressing plans for a second underground power station at the existing Cruachan complex which could double its capacity.
  • Main photo: Drax Group’s Ian Kinnaird (L) with UK Government Minister for Scotland, David Duguid (R), at Cruachan Power Station [view/download]

About Drax

Drax Group’s purpose is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future and in 2019 announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030, using Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) technology.

Its 3,400 employees operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production and supply to third parties.

Power generation:

Drax owns and operates a portfolio of renewable electricity generation assets in England and Scotland. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies five percent of the country’s electricity needs.

Having converted Drax Power Station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal it has become the UK’s biggest renewable power generator and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe. It is also where Drax is piloting the groundbreaking negative emissions technology BECCS within its CCUS (Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage) Incubation Area.

Its pumped storage, hydro and energy from waste assets in Scotland include Cruachan Power Station – a flexible pumped storage facility within the hollowed-out mountain Ben Cruachan.

Pellet production and supply:

Drax owns and has interests in 17 pellet mills in the US South and Western Canada which have the capacity to manufacture 4.9 million tonnes of compressed wood pellets (biomass) a year. The pellets are produced using materials sourced from sustainably managed working forests and are supplied to third party customers in Europe and Asia for the generation of renewable power.

Drax’s pellet mills supply around 20% of the biomass used at its own power station in North Yorkshire, England to generate flexible, renewable power for the UK’s homes and businesses.

Customers:

Through its two B2B energy supply brands, Haven Power and Opus Energy, Drax supplies energy to 250,000 businesses across Britain.

For more information visit www.drax.com