Archives: Press Release

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

Drax launches £500 grants for education and skills charities

17 June 2021

Press releases
Apprentice at Drax Group

Drax’s Charity Committee has a dedicated fund for supporting good causes local to its operations, which include Drax Power Station near Selby and its hydro power plants in Scotland.

It accepts funding requests that will have a positive impact on the local community by supporting the company’s STEM (Science Engineering Technology 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.

Drax also contributed to the Two Ridings Community Foundation to help people in Snaith and Rawcliffe, near Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire, after their homes were devastated by flooding, as well as making donations to local foodbanks.

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.”

Camblesforth Community Primary Academy, which is just a mile from Drax Power Station, recently received support from the Drax Charity Committee.

Headteacher Dave Barber 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 hands-on science experiences by purchasing five data loggers to help the children collect and learn more about data.”

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 has transformed itself into the largest decarbonisation project in Europe, having converted the power station in North Yorkshire to use sustainable biomass instead of coal and plans to go further with bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) – a negative emissions technology which can permanently remove CO2 from the atmosphere.

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

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

Drax and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries sign pioneering deal to deliver the world’s largest carbon capture power project

10 June 2021

Press releases
Kentaro Hosomi, Chief Regional Officer EMEA, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) at Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire
  • Agreement combines pioneering UK innovation and Japanese technology with the potential to deliver the largest deployment of negative emissions in power generation anywhere in the world, supporting the UK government’s ambitious target to reduce carbon emissions and enabling clean growth and green jobs.
  • Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) at Drax can enable the renewable energy company to become carbon negative by 2030 – permanently removing more CO2 from the atmosphere than is emitted across its operations.
  • Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to develop new centre of excellence for Carbon Capture and Use and Storage (CCUS) in London as well as looking at ways to strengthen its supply chain, including the potential production of its proprietary solvent in the UK.

[LONDON/TOKYO] Drax Group and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, Ltd., part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, have agreed a long-term contract for Drax to use its carbon capture technology, the Advanced KM CDR process™️, in what would be the largest deployment of negative emissions in power generation anywhere in the world.

The contract, which combines UK innovation and world-leading Japanese technology, will see Drax license MHI’s unique carbon capture solvent, KS-21™️, to capture CO2 at its power station near Selby, North Yorkshire.

Pictured L-R: Kentaro Hosomi, Chief Regional Officer EMEA, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI); Carl Clayton, Head of BECCS, Drax Group; Jenny Blyth, Project Analyst, Drax Group at Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire.

Pictured L-R: Kentaro Hosomi, Chief Regional Officer EMEA, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI); Carl Clayton, Head of BECCS, Drax Group; Jenny Blyth, Project Analyst, Drax Group at Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire [Click to view/download]

Drax is already the largest decarbonisation project in Europe, having converted its power station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal, reducing its emissions by more than 85%. By deploying BECCS technology, Drax aims to go further – becoming carbon negative by 2030.

The first BECCS unit at Drax could be operational as soon as 2027, supporting thousands of jobs across the North of England as soon as 2024, and capturing and storing at least 8 million tonnes of CO2 a year by 2030.

Drax is the first company to sign a contract to deploy carbon capture technology at scale in the UK. The project combines MHI’s proven and world-leading technology with offshore geological storage under the North Sea, helping the UK achieve its target to cut carbon emissions by 78% by 2035 and demonstrates global climate leadership ahead this weekend’s G7 in Cornwall and of COP26 in Glasgow in November.

As part of the agreement, MHI plans to locate its core CCS team at the company’s European headquarters in London and explore additional employment opportunities in the UK in future. MHI is also looking at ways to strengthen its supply chain, including the potential production of its proprietary solvent in the UK.

MHI BECCS pilot plant within CCUS Incubation Area, Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire

MHI BECCS pilot plant within CCUS Incubation Area, Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire [click to view/download]

Drax has already successfully trialled MHI’s carbon capture technology in a pilot that started in 2020 to test two of MHI’s proprietary solvents (KS-1™️ and KS-21™️).

Will Gardiner, Drax Group CEO, said:

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

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner in the control room at Drax Power Station [Click to view/download]

“The world urgently needs to move from making climate pledges to taking climate action. This game-changing contract between Drax and MHI could contribute to a decade of global environmental leadership from the UK and provide further stimulus to a post-Covid economic recovery.

“Carbon capture technologies like BECCS are going to be absolutely vital in the fight against the climate crisis. Subject to the right regulatory framework being in place, Drax stands ready to invest further in this essential negative emissions technology, which not only permanently removes CO2 from the atmosphere but also delivers the reliable, renewable electricity needed for clean, green economic growth.”

Kenji Terasawa, President & CEO, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, said:

“We are very proud to have been selected as Drax’s technology partner and we firmly believe that our carbon capture technology will make a significant contribution to the UK and wider global community achieving their net zero targets. We look forward to expanding our presence in the UK and developing a centre of excellence for the deployment of carbon capture technology across Europe, the Middle East and Africa region.

BECCS technology at Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire.

BECCS technology at Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire [Click to view/download]

“MHI aims to continue reducing greenhouse gases globally by providing reliable and economically feasible carbon capture technology, supported by research and development activity over 30 years and commercial records around the world.”

With an effective negative emissions policy and investment framework from the government, BECCS could be deployed at Drax as soon as 2027 – delivering the UK’s largest carbon capture project and permanently removing millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere each year.

Drax has already kickstarted the planning process to deploy BECCS at its power station in North Yorkshire – if successful work could get underway to build BECCS at Drax as soon as 2024, with the creation of thousands of jobs.

ENDS

Drax Media contacts:

Ben Wicks
Media Manager (Customers)
E: [email protected]
T: 07761 525 662

Selina Williams
Media Manager (Corporate)
E: [email protected]
T: 07912 230 393

MHI media contact:

Corporate Communication Department
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
E: [email protected]

Editor’s Notes

    • 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.
    • No investment decision has yet been taken and development remains subject to the UK government introducing the right regulatory framework.
    • Drax announced it was working on a pilot project with MHI last year to testMHI’s carbon capture technology’s suitability for use with biomass flue gases at Drax
Graphic showing Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) carbon capture technology process

Graphic showing Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) carbon capture technology process [click to view/download]

  • MHI, together with Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc. (KEPCO) started the development of KM CDR Process™ (Kansai-Mitsubishi Carbon Dioxide Removal Process), a post-combustion carbon capture technology, in 1990. As of May 2021, MHI has delivered a total of 13 commercial plants with the KM CDR Process™, with two commercial plants currently under construction, making it a global leader in carbon capture technology deployment. Two more plants are currently under construction.
  • The Advanced KM CDR ProcessTM, developed by MHIENG in collaboration with KEPCO, will use a new proprietary solvent, called KS-21TM. Compared to the earlier KS-1TM solvent, which has been adopted at 13 commercial plants delivered by MHIENG, KS-21TM has a number of advantageous properties, such as lower volatility and greater stability against degradation. The newer solvent is also expected to enable reduced running costs and other economic benefits.
  • A recent report by leading energy consultancy, Baringa, commissioned by Drax, found that that without BECCS at Drax Power Station the energy system would incur additional costs of around £4.5bn to achieve the UK Government’s fifth carbon budget in 2028 to 2032 – making decarbonisation more difficult and significantly more expensive.
  • Drax is a founding member of the Zero Carbon Humber initiative which aims to deploy green technologies including BECCS, Hydrogen and industrial CCS to decarbonise the UK’s most carbon intensive industrial cluster.
  • The Northern Endurance Partnership is leading on the deployment of the transport and storage infrastructure needed to permanently lock away the carbon dioxide emissions from industrial emitters in the Humber and Teesside regions.
  • Main photo caption: Kentaro Hosomi, Chief Regional Officer EMEA, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) at Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire. Click to view/download here.
  • What is bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) animation can be viewed in widescreen (16:9) here (download link) and square (1:1) here (download link).
  • B-roll video can be viewed below and downloaded here

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 

About Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Group

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group is one of the world’s leading industrial groups, spanning energy, logistics & infrastructure, industrial machinery, aerospace and defense. MHI Group combines cutting-edge technology with deep experience to deliver innovative, integrated solutions that help to realize a carbon neutral world, improve the quality of life and ensure a safer world.

For more information, please visit www.mhi.com or follow our insights and stories on www.spectra.mhi.com.

About Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, Ltd.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, Ltd. (MHIENG) includes the engineering business of the chemical plants and transportation systems of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and extends them with newly added environmental facilities (CO2 Capture Plant). MHIENG has provided numerous Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) projects covering large-scale infrastructure, such as chemical plants, environmental plants, and transportation systems, in many countries and regions around the world. The Company readily meets diversified customer expectations by undertaking all phases from project planning to basic design, detailed design, procurement, manufacture, construction, commissioning, after-sales service, and Operation & Maintenance (O&M), and capital participation in businesses.

For more information, please visit the Company’s website: https://www.mhiengineering.com/

Bechtel and Drax partner to explore global opportunities for new build BECCS

4 June 2021

Press releases
  • Bechtel, a world leader in engineering, construction and project management has entered into a strategic partnership with renewable energy company Drax, to explore options and locations to construct new Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) plants globally.
  • Scaling up BECCS sustainably over the coming decades will be critical to delivering the Paris Agreement climate targets and keeping the world on a pathway of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees.
  • The companies will also work together to identify how the design of a new build BECCS plant can be optimised using the latest technology and best practice in engineering design.

Bechtel has entered into a partnership with renewable energy company Drax to identify opportunities to construct new Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) power plants around the world.

Drax is the largest decarbonisation project in Europe having converted its power station near Selby in North Yorkshire to use sustainable biomass instead of coal.

By deploying BECCS’ vital negative emissions technology, Drax aims to go further, by becoming a carbon negative company by 2030.

Analysis by independent experts including the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and International Energy Agency has identified that BECCS and other technologies that can remove emissions from the atmosphere will need to be developed at a global scale over the coming years to limit climate change to 1.5 degrees of warming.

Bechtel will focus its study on strategically important regions for new build BECCS plants, including North America and Western Europe, as well as reviewing how to optimise the design of a BECCS plant using state-of-the-art engineering to maximise efficiency, performance and cost.

Jamie Cochrane, Bechtel Manager of Energy Transition said:

“Technological advancements have created new opportunities to improve how we bring power to communities worldwide. We are resolved to work with our customers on projects that deliver effective ways to contribute to a clean energy future. Tackling the big global challenges related to climate change is key to meeting aggressive environmental targets and we are proud to partner with Drax to optimise design and explore locations for the new generation of BECCS facilities.”

Jason Shipstone, Drax Group Chief Innovation Officer, said:

“Negative emissions technologies such as BECCS are crucial in tackling the global climate crisis and at Drax we’re already planning to retrofit this to our UK power station, demonstrating global climate leadership in the transformation of a former coal-fired power station.

“We’re interested in potential opportunities for exporting BECCS overseas, where Drax could help other countries take positive action to address the climate crisis and meet the Paris climate commitments by using innovative carbon capture technology to permanently remove CO2 from the atmosphere.”

Negative emissions technologies remove more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than they emit and are widely accepted by the world’s leading authorities on climate change as being essential in the fight against climate change.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

Bechtel’s study for Drax will:

  • Establish an integrated design for new build BECCS power plants.
  • Assess viability of strategic locations for new build plants.
  • Provide strategic information to enable Drax to build the business case.

About BECCS at Drax:

  • International organisations – such as the International Energy Agency – recognise that BECCS is the most mature negative emissions technology. They estimate that approximately 1.3 GtCO2 of negative emissions from BECCS is required globally every year to reach net zero.
  • 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 53MtCO2 of negative emissions from BECCS the UK’s independent Climate Change Committee says are needed in order for the UK to reach its climate targets.
  • Governments enhanced commitments to reduce emissions by 2035 and phase out coal, alongside the UNIPCC and recent IEA’s reports, also reinforce how net zero is only achievable through negative emissions and sustainable BECCS.
  • BECCS is the only negative emissions technology that generates power whilst also capturing and permanently storing carbon away.

Media contacts:

Mat Ovenden
Manager Communications and External Affairs, Bechtel
E: [email protected]
T: +1 346 241 6701
T: + 1 713 235 3041

Ben Wicks
Media Manager (BECCS and Customers), Drax
E: [email protected]
T: +44 7761 525 662

About Bechtel

Bechtel is a trusted engineering, construction and project management partner to industry and government. Differentiated by the quality of our people and our relentless drive to deliver the most successful outcomes, we align our capabilities to our customers’ objectives to create a lasting positive impact. Since 1898, we have helped customers complete more than 25,000 projects in 160 countries on all seven continents that have created jobs, grown economies, improved the resiliency of the world’s infrastructure, increased access to energy, resources, and vital services, and made the world a safer, cleaner place.

Bechtel serves the Energy; Infrastructure; Nuclear, Security & Environmental; and Mining & Metals markets. Our services span from initial planning and investment, through start-up and operations. www.bechtel.com

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

Experts issue weather warning for Britain’s electricity grid

24 May 2021

Press releases
View of Power Station and electricity pylon Where: Cruachan
  • UK’s energy system must prepare for once-in-a-decade prolonged periods of little wind and reduced daylight.
  • Report warns recent blackouts in Texas show the danger of overlooking extreme weather risks.
  • Britain needs more flexible and longer-term storage from pumped storage hydro, not just batteries, to plug the gap.

Britain’s ever-changing weather could put its landmark net zero climate target at risk and become a threat to the power grid’s security unless policymakers take action, a new report has warned.

The independent report by academics from Imperial College London for Drax Electric Insights, commissioned via Imperial Consultants, shows the UK experienced its longest spell of low wind output in more than a decade during the first quarter of this year. Output from the country’s 24.4 gigawatt (GW) wind turbine fleet fell to as low as 0.6 GW on 3 March, in sharp contrast to the 18.1 GW delivered later that month.

Grid operators had to overwhelmingly call on gas-fired units to generate power to plug the gap, with the report finding every gigawatt of falling wind output being replaced by 0.84 GW of gas – harming Britain’s carbon cutting ambitions.

Periods of reduced generation from intermittent renewables cause strain on electricity systems, with the phenomena recognised in Germany as a Dunkelflaute – a dark wind lull. The event at the start of March was the longest Dunkelflaute that Britain has experienced in the last decade with 11 straight days of low wind output.

Chart: Britain’s wind farm capacity factor over the past six months, highlighting times when it fell below 20% for more than a day

Britain’s wind farm capacity factor over the past six months, highlighting times when it fell below 20% for more than a day [click to view/download]

The report warns that Britain could expect to face prolonged low-wind periods on average every 20 years, making them a key challenge to the country’s energy security. It says the recent widespread blackouts in the US State of Texas “highlights the cost of overlooking extreme weather risks” to energy systems.

Dr Iain Staffell of Imperial College London, and lead author of the quarterly Electric Insights report, said:

“It’s time for Britain to get serious about the threat of extreme weather events to our electricity system. Renewable power sources have made our country cleaner and greener, but as they rely on the ever-changing British weather, completing our transition away from fossil fuels comes with serious challenges.

Dr Malte Jansen of Imperial College London, co-author of the report, added:

“With wind and solar power set to supply half our electricity needs in the next five years, these extreme events will become much more impactful. To bridge the gap and deliver a net zero energy system, the UK needs to invest in much more clean and flexible technologies, such as long duration energy storage.”

Pumped storage hydro 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. 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.

Renewable energy leader Drax Group is progressing plans to develop a second, underground power station at its existing Cruachan pumped storage hydro plant in Scotland.

Pumped storage animation

Drax Group CEO, Will Gardiner, said:

“A new generation of pumped storage hydro power stations will allow the UK decarbonise faster and cheaper.

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

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner in the control room at Drax Power Station [Click to view/download]

“These water batteries soak up surplus power from wind and solar farms and then release it to plug gaps during extreme weather events. Innovative storage projects like Drax’s plans to expand Cruachan are essential to delivering a net zero electricity system, but we need the right investment framework from policymakers for it to become a reality.”

The Drax Electric Insights report found the UK’s pumped storage hydro power stations set a new daily average output high during the first quarter of this year, underlining their increased importance for keeping the power grid stable.

ENDS

Media contacts:

Aidan Kerr

Drax Group Media Manager

E: [email protected]

T: 07712670888

Editor’s Notes

  • The report found the UK is almost entirely reliant on using gas to plug the gap when wind power does not deliver, with every GW of lost wind output being replaced by 0.84 GW of gas.

  • [Click image to view/download the report PDF or alternatively read the report webpage here]

    Between the 26 February and 8 March, the capacity factor of the national wind fleet did not go above 20%.
  • Wind farm output fell to as low as 0.6 GW on 3 March.
  • Biomass units generated a record amount of renewable power during the period, with 3.83 GW supplied to the grid on 7 January.
  • Based on longer records of historical wind speed data from Renewables.ninja (a project co-developed by Drax Electric Insights lead author Dr Iain Staffell), the March Dunkelflaute could be expected roughly once every 20 years in Britain.
  • Pumped storage hydro power stations set a new daily output average high of 409 MW during the first quarter of 2021.
  • Drax is progressing plans to expand its existing ‘Hollow Mountain’ Cruachan pumped storage hydro plant in Scotland.
  • 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.

About Electric Insights

  • Electric Insights is commissioned by Drax and delivered by a team of independent academics from Imperial College London, facilitated by the college’s consultancy company – Imperial Consultants. The quarterly report analyses raw data made publicly available by National Grid and Elexon, which run the electricity and balancing market respectively, and Sheffield Solar.
  • Electric Insights Quarterly focuses on supply and demand, prices, emissions, the performance of the various generation technologies and the network that connects them.
  • The quarterly reports from the last four and a half years can be access at the new website reports.electricinsights.co.uk alongside the interactive electricinsights.co.uk which provides data from 2009 until the present.
  • You can embed Electric Insight’s live dashboard on your website or blog to keep track of what’s happening in the power grid through a new widget.

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 hydro 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 Group CEO marks COP26 go-ahead announcement

14 May 2021

Press releases
A pylon carries electricity transmission lines from Cruachan Hydroelectric Power Station above Loch Awe in the mountains of the West Highlands of Scotland

“COP26 gives us a unique opportunity to set a clear pathway to net zero emissions globally and will be the best chance the world has to come together and set ambitious goals to tackle the climate crisis.

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

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner in the control room at Drax Power Station [Click to view/download]

“In the last decade the UK has decarbonised its electricity system faster than any other in the world, however if we are to reach the targets set in Paris, then we must continue to show global leadership and make the next 10 years the decade of delivery.”

 

Photo caption: A pylon carries electricity transmission lines from Cruachan pumped hydro storage power station above Loch Awe in the mountains of the West Highlands of Scotland [view/download]