Archives: Press Release

Leading energy companies announce new zero-carbon UK partnership

27 May 2019

Press releases
Humber Bridge at Sunset

  • Drax Group, Equinor and National Grid Ventures announce new zero carbon partnership

  • Commitment marks first significant response from industry following Committee on Climate Change’s Net Zero report

  • Plan could deliver the UK’s first zero carbon cluster and help position Great Britain at the heart of the global energy revolution

This is the first significant action from industry since the UK Committee on Climate Change (CCC) recently published its Net Zero report, which found that CCUS and hydrogen technology developed in regional industrial clusters is essential if Great Britain is going to achieve a ‘net zero’ carbon economy by 2050.

The partnership could lead to the Humber becoming the world’s first net zero carbon region and home to a new world leading hydrogen economy.

View/download graphic with: grey background or white background

Commenting on the partnership, Will Gardiner, Drax Group CEO, said:

“The Committee on Climate Change was clear – the UK needs both bioenergy with CCS and hydrogen production at scale by 2030 to achieve a ‘net zero’ carbon economy. This partnership is committed to meeting this challenge putting Great Britain at the heart of the global energy revolution.

“With Drax’s carbon negative power station, the Humber region could lead the world in new technologies that can deliver for the climate and the economy, helping to create a cleaner environment for future generations whilst creating new jobs and export opportunities for British businesses.

“We’re excited to be working with National Grid Ventures and Equinor on this project – for decades the Humber has been a strategically important industrial cluster for the UK – it has the skills, industrial capability as well as offshore storage to transform itself into a cutting-edge low carbon hub.”

Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire. Click to view/download.

Irene Rummelhoff, Equinor’s executive vice president for marketing, midstream and processing, said:

“As a global leader in CCS and a major gas supplier to the UK for many decades, we are committed to helping shape sustainable solutions for a low carbon future.

“We are pleased to be partnering with Drax and National Grid Ventures in looking at how the Humber region can be a launch pad for wider decarbonisation in the UK economy and be an example for others to learn from. Globally we must see substantial decarbonisation of industry and energy in the years ahead, and we believe CCS and hydrogen must play a significant role in this.”

Equinor’s Snøhvit offshore development in the Barents Sea. Click to view/download.

Jon Butterworth, Chief Operating Officer, Global Transmission, for National Grid Ventures, said:

“We all agree that we must act now to start delivering a ‘net-zero’ carbon economy. That’s why we’re delighted to be working together with Equinor and Drax. This is a project of great potential for the UK and the Humber region and we look forward to leveraging our skills and expertise to enable this transition.

“We have seen rapid progress in decarbonising energy through established technologies such as wind power, solar and electricity interconnectors. CCUS and hydrogen create a new pathway to greater decarbonisation of the energy system and provide a platform for decarbonising other areas of our economy, which will be to the benefit of current and future generations.”

National Grid pipelines. Click to view/download.

The three companies will work together to:

  • Explore the opportunity to scale-up the innovative bioenergy carbon capture and storage (BECCS) pilot project at the Drax Power Station in order to create the world’s first carbon negative power station in the 2020s.
  • Explore the potential development of a large-scale hydrogen demonstrator within the Drax site by as early as the mid-2020s – in line with the CCC’s recommendation that hydrogen should be produced at scale in at least one industrial cluster by 2030.
  • Explore the strategic opportunities in developing a cutting-edge hydrogen economy in the region.

Equinor’s Tjeldbergodden industrial facility at Nordmøre, Norway, has a methanol plant, a gas receiving terminal and an air separation plant. Click to view/download.

Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire is already capturing a tonne of carbon dioxide a day from its innovative bioenergy carbon capture and storage (BECCS) pilot project. If it is scaled up it could serve as the ‘anchor’ for a regional CCUS network capturing millions of tonnes of carbon each year from nearby industrial emitters.

Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry visited the Drax Power Station BECCS pilot project in November 2018. Click to view/download.

The consortium has the collective expertise and credibility to deliver on the CCC recommendation for large-scale trials of hydrogen, development of CCS transport and storage infrastructure, and the deployment of BECCS at scale.

A study outlining the technical, economic and societal opportunities for CCUS and hydrogen in the Humber region will be published by the partners later this year.

ENDS

Media contacts

Ali Lewis
Drax Group Head of Media & PR
E: [email protected]
T: +44 7712 670 888

Eskil Eriksen
Equinor Communication Manager
E: [email protected]
T: +47 9588 2534

Sara Revell
National Grid Ventures Press Officer
E: [email protected]
T: +44 1926 653962

Editor’s Notes

  • The consortium will work with partners in the public and private sectors to harness the Humber’s key strengths and capabilities and help it become the world’s first net-zero carbon industrial cluster. These include:
  • Its position as the largest industrial cluster in the UK by emissions;
  • Its proximity to Drax Power Station, which could become the single largest source of ‘negative emissions’ in the UK through its BECCS project;
  • The extensive engineering design work previously undertaken to develop a large-scale carbon transportation and storage network in the region as part of the White Rose CCS project;
  • Its proximity to the Endurance and Bunter aquifer in the North Sea, a large natural CO2 store which could be used by the Humber and other nearby industrial clusters to permanently store their carbon emissions.
  • Drax announced in February that is has started to capture carbon dioxide from its BECCS pilot project using technology developed by Leeds University spin-out company C-Capture. This is the first-time carbon dioxide has been captured from the combustion of a 100% biomass feedstock anywhere in the world.
  • Since starting its innovative BECCS pilot project Drax has been talking to several industries about using its CO2 in their processes. This could be to produce concrete, within the food and drinks industry or creating synthetic fuels to use in hard-to-decarbonise sectors like aviation. It has set up a dedicated ‘Incubation Area’ at the power station that will give other technology companies the opportunity to test their processes on its carbon dioxide.
  • Drax Power Station is already the largest decarbonisation project in Europe having converted two thirds of its generating units to use biomass instead of coal.
  • If the BECCS pilot can be scaled up to deliver negative emissions, Drax Power Station would be helping to remove the gases that cause global warming from the atmosphere at the same time as electricity is produced.
  • The Committee on Climate Change’s Net Zero report states that BECCS could generate up to 173 TWh of electricity by 2050, capturing up to 51 Mt CO2 – around half of the remaining carbon in the economy that the UK will need to capture to become ‘net zero’.
  • Today Drax is capturing a tonne of carbon dioxide a day from its pilot – once scaled up it would be capturing 40,000 tonnes of carbon a day from its four biomass generating units. That’s at a 90% capture rate.
  • The CCC’s Net Zero report also identified that at least one of the UK’s CCUS regional clusters should involve substantial production of low-carbon hydrogen by 2030 to stay ‘on track’ for net zero. It also recommends that infrastructure development for CCUS should start as early as possible, in all regional clusters with large industrial emissions.
  • The recently published H21 North of England study has also shown that up to 3.7 million homes as well as other industrial processes could be converted from natural gas to hydrogen to meet the UK’s climate change targets

About Drax

Drax Group’s ambition is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future. Its 2,600-strong staff 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 flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity generation assets across Britain. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies six 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.

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.  It also owns and operates four gas power stations in England.

B2B supply:  

Drax owns two B2B energy supply businesses:

  • Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity and energy services to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.
  • Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity, energy services and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

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

About Equinor

Equinor is transitioning into a broad energy company committed to long term value creation in a low carbon future inspired by its vision of shaping the future of energy. Equinor continues to pursue its strategy of always safe, high value and low carbon through developing and maximising the value of its unique Norwegian continental shelf position, its international oil and gas business, its manufacturing and trading activities and its growing new energy business.

Equinor is a leading provider of oil and gas to the UK and has three offshore wind projects in the UK: Sheringham Shoal, Dudgeon and Hywind Scotland, the world’s first floating offshore wind farm. It is developing three further offshore wind projects at Dogger Bank which would make up a further 3.6 GW of capacity. It is also developing the Mariner and Rosebank projects on the UK Continental Shelf and is an active explorer with five exploration wells being drilled in 2019.

Equinor has more than 20 years’ experience with CO2 storage in both offshore and onshore locations. It is currently storing up to 1.8 million tonnes per year, equivalent to the emissions from 850,000 cars, and is the operator for Northern Lights, the transport and permanent storage section of Norway’s full-scale demonstration project for CCS.

In addition, Equinor has extensive expertise across the hydrogen supply chain, including through producing hydrogen for its methanol plant at Tjeldbergodden in Norway, and is engaged in feasibility studies to evaluate the conversion of a combined cycle power station from natural gas to hydrogen fuel.

About National Grid Ventures

National Grid Ventures is part of National Grid plc, one of the world’s largest investor-owned energy companies. Separate from National Grid’s core regulated businesses, NGV develops, operates and invests in energy projects, technologies and partnerships to accelerate the development of a clean energy future for consumers. NGV’s existing portfolio includes four gigawatts of operational electricity interconnector capacity connecting the UK with neighbouring markets, which enables the delivery of cleaner, more secure and more affordable energy. NGV is also constructing three more interconnectors to France, Norway and Denmark and has recently announced an agreement to acquire Geronimo Energy, a leading US-based renewable energy developer.

Harry harks back to his head for heights – 50 years on from building giant power station chimney

23 May 2019

Press releases
Harry Shann, Drax engineer

Harry Shann, now 83, was part of the team who worked at Drax Power Station 50 years ago constructing the 850ft high chimney, which has three flues linked to the site’s six generating units, four of which now run on sustainable biomass instead of coal.

The chimney took just four months to build after work started in early 1969 and was completed four months ahead of schedule by a team of around 30 workers, with the topping out ceremony held in May to celebrate its completion.

Now, Harry, who was just 33 when he joined the project and still lives locally in Selby, has spent time back at the Drax site to reflect on his involvement in the record-breaking construction project.

He said:

“I still see it pretty much every day. It was definitely the highest build I ever worked on.

“I’m very proud of it, even after all these years, and I can still remember the time I spent on site. Considering the size of it though, we weren’t there long. We really got a move on.”

Due to the height of the structure, reaching the top can only be achieved by an eight-minute journey in an industrial lift or by scaling the 1,460 steps spiralling up the central void of the chimney.

Views from the top can stretch as far as the Humber Bridge more than 30 miles away on a clear day – and Harry admits it was only a job for those who were comfortable working high above the ground.

“I just never had a fear of heights. I was in the Parachute Regiment before I became a scaffolder, so that might have had something to do with it,”

the octogenarian said on his return visit to view the huge structure he helped to create.

“Being back at Drax Power Station, I realise just how much it’s changed. When I worked here, looking down from the chimney the area was bare, with hardly any buildings. Now it’s just amazing, it’s a wonderful site and I feel proud that the chimney is still standing 50 years later.”

The North Yorkshire power station, which first began generating electricity in 1974 when the first of its six generating units was commissioned, now produces enough electricity to supply five per cent of the UK’s power and is the biggest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Drax Power CEO Andy Koss said:

“Harry’s efforts, along with his colleagues’, in building such an important and iconic part of the power station are an integral part of Drax’s history and ongoing success.

“50 years on it is still the tallest industrial chimney in the UK – in many ways its completion marked the start of a rich heritage for engineering excellence and innovation at Drax, which has continued to the present day.”

Earlier this year, Drax confirmed that its groundbreaking trial of bioenergy carbon capture and storage (BECCS), using technology developed by Leeds-based C-Capture, had become the first project of its kind in the world to capture CO2 from a 100% biomass feedstock.

Drax has converted two-thirds of its generating units at the site near Selby to use sustainable biomass instead of coal transforming the business to become the largest renewable power generator in the UK. 

ENDS

Chimney facts:

Drax chimney’s foundations are 70ft-deep.

The 44,000 tonne chimney cost around £1.5 million to build in 1969, the equivalent to £30 million today.

It’s almost twice the height of the Great Pyramid of Giza.

The record for the highest chimney in the world belongs to the Gres-2 Power Station in Kazakhstan. Built in 1987, it stands 1,377ft (420m) tall.

Media contacts:

Mark Duffell
MCD Communications Ltd
E: [email protected]
T: 07969080272

Jessica Gorton
Drax Group Press Officer
E: [email protected]
T: 07712677177

About Drax

Drax Group’s ambition is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future. Its 2,600-strong staff 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 flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity generation assets across Britain. 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.

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.  It also owns and operates four gas power stations in England.

B2B supply:  

Drax owns two B2B energy supply businesses:

  • Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity and energy services to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.
  • Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity, energy services and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.


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

EV excellence street race students in pole position at awards evening

Press releases
Hull EV street race awards

The four teams were among seven schools from Selby who built the electric race car provided by Drax Group as part of its £35,000 initiative to boost STEM (science technology engineering and Maths) skills.

Staff from Drax worked with the youngsters to help them build their car, with the power firm also providing each school and college with the tools they needed for the project, which culminated in the special street race event at the end of April, organised by Greenpower.

Representatives from four of the schools received their awards at an event at Hull’s Guildhall.

The pupils from Selby Abbey Primary School went home with a trio of awards, including the overall award in the category for younger entrants and the Spirit of Greenpower award, presented on the night by Drax Power CEO Andy Koss.

 

Judges praised the Selby Abbey team for ‘representing the saying that it’s about the taking part, not the winning’, highlighting how they had worked together to solve issues on the day and even brought along cheerleaders to urge the team on.

Among the other winning teams were Selby College, which came home six minutes ahead of  their nearest rivals in a one-hour endurance race, and Camblesforth Community Primary School, which picked up three awards on the night having finished first in one race and second in in two other challenges.

Barwic Parade Community Primary School picked up two awards, including one for having the best bodywork on the day – after the team designed their car to look like the school’s mascot, Herbie the Bear.

Jo Jennings, Head Teacher at Selby Abbey Primary School, said:

“It was a fantastic evening for the pupils and everyone who has contributed to this project at our school. They all thoroughly deserve this recognition. 

“I’m incredibly proud of the time and effort everyone has put into this and it’s been a brilliant way to get our children engaged with STEM subjects. They have learnt new things and had a great time working as a team to build and then drive the car. It’s been a real centrepiece of our lessons and other pupils will benefit from it in the future too.”

Drax Power CEO Andy Koss, who was one of the judges at the event on April 28, said:

“It’s great to see so many of our schools coming away with awards – my congratulations go to everyone who took part in this project.

“The commitment from all of the schools has been exceptional – it’s really sparked the students’ imaginations, which is what it is all about.

“It’s really important that we find fun and exciting projects like this to engage young people and encourage them to study STEM subjects. It’s vital if we are to ensure that the next generation has the skills that innovative businesses like ours need.”

ENDS

Media contacts:

Mark Duffell
MCD Communications Ltd
E: [email protected]
T: 07969080272

Jessica Gorton
Drax Group Press Officer
E: [email protected]
T: 07712677177

Editor’s Notes

  • Four primary schools – Barwic Parade, Camblesforth, Selby Community and Selby Abbey – received a 15mph Goblin G2 battery-powered car, which students and teachers then assembled.
  • Older students from Selby High School, Holy Family Catholic High School and Selby College built the more powerful Formula 24 car, which can reach speeds of up to 30mph.
  • Both cars took around 15 hours to build, with the teams also designing their own bodywork.
  • The primary school teams took part in a series of drag and slalom races in their Goblin cars. The top drivers from each team then raced against each other in a final 1km circuit through the city centre.
  • Students from the secondary schools and colleges raced the F24 cars around the same circuit in an endurance test. The teams had to switch between three drivers and maintain their cars during the race and the winner was the team which completed the most laps in 90 minutes.

About Drax

Drax Group’s ambition is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future. Its 2,600-strong staff 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 flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity generation assets across Britain. 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.

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.  It also owns and operates four gas power stations in England.

B2B supply:  

Drax owns two B2B energy supply businesses:

  • Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity and energy services to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.
  • Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity, energy services and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

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

Treasury Minister Robert Jenrick visits groundbreaking bioenergy carbon capture project

20 May 2019

Press releases
Treasury Minister Robert Jenrick visits groundbreaking bioenergy carbon capture project

UK Government Minister and Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Robert Jenrick MP, has visited Drax Power Station to find out about its world-first Bioenergy Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) pilot project.

Drax, the UK’s largest power station and Europe’s biggest decarbonisation project, has successfully converted four of its six generating units to run on sustainable biomass instead of coal, delivering carbon savings of more than 80 per cent.

Its innovative BECCS project started capturing carbon dioxide earlier this year and could transform Drax, which supplies 12% of the UK’s renewable energy, into the world’s first negative emissions power station. This would play a vital role in helping the UK to meet its climate change obligations.

If the BECCS pilot can be scaled up to deliver negative emissions, Drax Power Station would be helping to remove the gases that cause global warming from the atmosphere at the same time as electricity is produced.

The UK Committee on Climate Change’s Net Zero report stated that the country needs carbon capture, usage and storage technologies and hydrogen developed in regional industrial clusters if it is going to achieve a ‘net zero’ carbon economy by 2050.

Andy Koss, Drax Power CEO, who met with the Minister and the team from the treasury officials, said: “We are delighted to welcome Robert Jenrick and the team from the Treasury to Drax. Drax is the biggest renewable power generator in the country and has played a vital role in helping the UK to decarbonise faster than anywhere else in the world.

“Our BECCS pilot project could enable Drax to go further to become the anchor for a new zero carbon economy in the Humber region, delivering for the environment and the wider UK economy. We are proud of our contribution to the region’s economy and are committed to supporting future growth across the Northern Powerhouse.”

Drax supports more than 5,700 jobs in the North of England and generates over £600 million for the Northern Powerhouse economy.

Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Robert Jenrick MP said: “The UK is a world leader in tackling climate change, and we have reduced our reliance on carbon faster than any other G20 country since 2000.

“But we will need new, innovative technologies to further reduce our emissions. Today I’ve seen first-hand Drax’s innovative Carbon Capture project which has the potential to make an important contribution to tackling climate change in the future.”

ENDS

Media contacts:

Ali Lewis
Drax Group Head of Media & PR
E: [email protected]
T: 07712670888

Notes to editors:

  • Drax announced in February that is has started to capture carbon dioxide from its BECCS pilot project using technology developed by Leeds University spin-out company C-Capture. This is the first-time carbon dioxide has been captured from the combustion of a 100% biomass feedstock anywhere in the world.
  • Since starting its innovative BECCS pilot project Drax has been talking to several industries about using its CO2 in their processes. This could be to produce concrete, within the food and drinks industry or creating synthetic fuels to use in hard-to-decarbonise sectors like aviation. It has set up a dedicated ‘Incubation Area’ at the power station that will give other technology companies the opportunity to test their processes on its carbon dioxide.
  • If the BECCS pilot can be scaled up to deliver negative emissions, Drax Power Station would be helping to remove the gases that cause global warming from the atmosphere at the same time as electricity is produced.
  • The Committee on Climate Change’s Net Zero report states that BECCS could generate up to 173 TWh of electricity by 2050, capturing up to 51 Mt CO2 – around half of the remaining carbon in the economy that the UK will need to capture to become ‘net zero’.
  • The CCC’s Net Zero report also identified that at least one of the UK’s CCUS regional clusters should involve substantial production of low-carbon hydrogen by 2030 to stay ‘on track’ for net zero. It also recommends that infrastructure development for CCUS should start as early as possible, in all regional clusters with large industrial emissions.
  • Today Drax is capturing a tonne of carbon dioxide a day from its pilot – once scaled up it could be capturing 16 million tonnes of carbon a year from its four biomass generating units. 

About Drax

Drax Group’s ambition is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future. Its 2,600-strong staff 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 flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity generation assets across Britain. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies six 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.

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.  It also owns and operates four gas power stations in England.

B2B supply:  

Drax owns two B2B energy supply businesses:

  • Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity and energy services to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.
  • Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity, energy services and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

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 announces £100,000 for Galloway Glens initiative

13 May 2019

Press releases
Galloway Glens initiative visit

The funding will be used over four years to promote the region’s heritage, boost the local economy and support sustainability initiatives in local communities.

Drax Group acquired the historic Galloway Hydro Scheme as part of a portfolio of important renewable, low carbon and flexible power generation assets earlier this year.

The Galloway Hydro Scheme was commissioned in the 1930s and was the first large-scale integrated hydro-electric complex to be built in Britain. It consists of six power stations, eight dams and a network of tunnels, aqueducts and pipelines – all working together to produce enough renewable electricity for 90,000 households at times of peak demand.

Tongland Power Station is the largest of the Galloway Hydro Scheme’s electricity generation plants and provides an excellent example of early modernist architecture in an industrial setting.

Its uniqueness and the significance of Loch Ken, which is an important part of the system as well as the local landscape, brought the hydro-electricity scheme to the attention of the Galloway Glens Initiative.

Ted Leeming, Chairman of the Galloway Glens, said:

“Through the Galloway Glens we aim to address the challenges faced by the area, by harnessing the potential of local heritage sites like this one. We are developing education and training initiatives, supporting the tourism economy and encouraging young people to stay and work locally. We are delighted to be working in partnership with Drax; I look forward to welcoming them to the Partnership Board and their donation will ‘turbo-charge’ our activities, putting Galloway on the map.”

Ian Kinnaird, Drax Group’s Head of Hydro said:

“We’re proud of the fact that the Galloway Hydro Scheme is considered a prominent feature of the local landscape. Drax is committed to supporting the local communities within which we operate and doing all we can to ensure they thrive. We look forward to helping to continue the good work of the Galloway Glens Scheme in this area.”

Chair of Dumfries & Galloway Council’s Economy, Environment & Infrastructure Committee, Councillor Archie Dryburgh, added:

“We welcome Drax to Dumfries & Galloway and are delighted they are formal partners of the Galloway Glens Scheme. Our priority is to support the local economy, and this is a great example of our amazing cultural and natural heritage driving genuine economic benefits on the ground.”

The Galloway Glens Initiative is formed of partnerships between the Dumfries & Galloway Council’s Environment Team, as well as organisations like the Galloway & Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere.

In 2017, it received an award of £2.7 million from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support its work in the region.

ENDS

Photo: Drax, The Galloway Glens Scheme & D&G Council meeting by Loch Ken

L-R Councillor Archie Dryburgh – D&G Council, Vicky Bullivant – Drax Group Head of Sustainable Business, Ted Leeming – Galloway Glens Scheme Chairman, Ian Kinnaird – Drax Group Head of Hydro.

Media contacts:

Ali Lewis
Drax Group Head of Media & PR
E: [email protected]
T: 07712670888

Jessica Gorton
Drax Group Press Officer
E: [email protected]
T: 07712677177

About Drax

Drax Group’s ambition is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future. Its 2,600-strong staff 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 flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity generation assets across Britain. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies six 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.

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.  It also owns and operates four gas power stations in England.

B2B supply:  

Drax owns two B2B energy supply businesses:

  • Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity and energy services to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.
  • Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity, energy services and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

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 ‘Net Zero’ report from the Committee on Climate Change

2 May 2019

Press releases
sunset at Twistleton Scar in the Yorkshire Dales National Park

“We stand ready to implement the Committee on Climate Change’s recommendations and scale up the successful BECCS pilot at Drax to create the world’s first negative emissions power station in the mid-2020s. Bioenergy with carbon capture is the cornerstone around which a low carbon economy can be built: Crucial for tackling climate change, it will also create new jobs and export opportunities for British businesses.”

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner at Drax Power Station. Click photo to view in high res for download.

For background:

  • The Committee on Climate Change’s Net Zero report due to be published on Thursday May 2, recommends that Bioenergy Carbon Capture and Storage is deployed at scale by 2030.
  • If Drax’s BECCS pilot can be scaled up to deliver negative emissions, Drax Power Station would be helping to remove gases that cause global warming from the atmosphere at the same time as electricity is produced.
  • Drax is talking to a number of industries about using the CO2 it is already capturing in their processes. This could be for the production of concrete, putting the fizz in the drinks industry or creating synthetic fuels to use in hard-to-decarbonise sectors like aviation.
  • Drax is also working with the Humber Local Enterprise Partnership, and other interested parties to explore the role CCUS can play in turning the Humber Estuary – the UK’s most energy intensive industrial cluster – into the world’s first ‘net-zero-carbon cluster’. It is ideally located for accessing offshore stores in the North Sea such as the Endurance field, which is roughly 60 miles off the coast.
  • If Drax can scale up its BECCS pilot it could create more opportunities for capturing and storing carbon dioxide from other industrial emitters in the Humber region, unlocking the potential to create a new hydrogen economy, creating jobs and delivering major environmental benefits globally.

  • Today Drax is capturing a tonne of carbon dioxide a day from its pilot – once scaled up it would be capturing 40,000 tonnes of carbon a day from its four biomass generating units. That’s at a 90% capture rate.
  • Read more about Drax’s Bioenergy Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) pilot here.

Bioenergy carbon capture and storage (BECCS) pilot project at Drax Power Station. Click photo to view/download in high res.

Dan’s double celebration: EV race champion and power station apprentice

29 April 2019

Press releases

Dan Callon, along with his Selby College team-mates, built the electric car provided by Drax Group as part of its £35,000 initiative to boost STEM (science technology engineering and Maths) skills at seven schools in the town.

The Selby College team, which gave up precious time during the Easter holidays to fine tune their car and test it, left other competitors from across the country trailing in their dust to take pole position in the Greenpower street race event in Hull yesterday (Sunday).

It rounded off a period of positive news for Dan, who also recently found out that he would be one of the next intake of engineering apprentices at Drax Power Station, based near Selby, later this year after successfully applying for the training role.

The six other schools from the Selby area, provided with kit cars and the tools to build them by Drax, also competed in the races in the centre of Hull, watched by hundreds of locals who lined the specially-coned off race track.

Goblin cars from Camblesforth (left) and Barwic Parade (right) on track in Hull. Click to download.

Car designs included a bear, a cannon and a tribute to the Humber while another recycled the packaging the car was delivered in to make its bodywork.

The pupils and students took part in a range of colourful events from drag races to a 60-minute endurance event on a special street circuit in the centre of Hull.

But top marks went to the Selby College team, which came home first in an hour-long race against 13 other teams – crossing the finish line six minutes ahead of their nearest rival to the delight of Dan and team-mates Sam Bygrave, Liam Dunn and Lauren Askin.

The Selby College team after the race (Dan Callon is the driver in the car). Click to download.

Dan, 17, from Selby, said:

“It’s been a great experience building the car with the rest of the team and then driving it was amazing. I can’t believe we won – it was the perfect ending.

“I’ve learnt so much while we’ve been building the car and now, I can’t wait to move on to the next stage of my career with my apprenticeship at Drax. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Drax Power CEO Andy Koss said:

“We are thrilled one of our teams won in Hull at the weekend. Our congratulations go to Dan, Sam, Liam and Lauren – they have done a marvellous job – and I look forward to hopefully seeing Dan at the power station later this year.

“The commitment from all of the schools has been exceptional – it’s really sparked the students’ imaginations, which is what this project is all about.

“Finding fun and exciting projects like this to engage young people and encourage them to study STEM subjects is the key to ensuring the next generation of potential employees has the skills that innovative businesses like ours need.”

He added:

“Too many children in the North are falling behind their counterparts in other areas of the UK when it comes to education and skills, leading to a serious skills shortage for employers. We want to change that with initiatives like this one.”

Liz Ridley, Deputy Principal at Selby College, said:

“We are absolutely delighted – winning the race is a fantastic reward for all of the hard work that the students and dedicated tutors have put into this project.

“The best part about it is that it doesn’t stop here – more of our students will benefit from this initiative, because we can dismantle the car and get new students to re-build it each year. We are extremely grateful to Drax for all of their support.

“Our whole aim as a college is to give students the experience and skills they need for their future careers and it’s brilliant that Dan has this opportunity with Drax. We wish him all the best, as we do all our students.”

The Cannon: Selby Abbey’s car, named after their teacher Mrs Cannon. Click to download.

Stacey Cannon, a teacher at Selby Abbey Primary, whose pupils named their car The Cannon in her honour, said:

“I’m really proud of them all and the effort they have put in to this and I’m proud to see the car out there with my name on it.

“I think they have grown so much throughout this project especially in relation to the STEM subjects. It will hopefully open their minds to the world of engineering.”

ENDS

Media contacts:

Mark Duffell
MCD Communications Ltd
E: [email protected]
T: 07969080272

Jessica Gorton
Drax Group Press Officer
E: [email protected]
T: 07712677177

Editor’s Notes

Four primary schools – Barwic Parade, Camblesforth, Selby Community and Selby Abbey – received a 15mph Goblin G2 battery-powered car, which students and teachers then assembled.

  • Older students from Selby High School, Holy Family Catholic High School and Selby College built the more powerful Formula 24 car, which can reach speeds of up to 30mph.
  • Both cars took around 15 hours to build, with the teams also designing their own bodywork.
  • The primary school teams took part in a series of drag and slalom races in their Goblin cars. The top drivers from each team then raced against each other in a final 1km circuit through the city centre.
  • Students from the secondary schools and colleges raced the F24 cars around the same circuit in an endurance test. The teams had to switch between three drivers and maintain their cars during the race and the winner was the team which completed the most laps in 90 minutes.

Photo caption

Main photo: Dan Callon and the Selby College car on track. Download

About Drax

Drax Group’s ambition is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future. Its 2,600-strong staff 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 flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity generation assets across Britain. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies six 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.

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.  It also owns and operates four gas power stations in England.

B2B supply:  

Drax owns two B2B energy supply businesses:

  • Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity and energy services to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.
  • Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity, energy services and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

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

About Greenpower

  • The Greenpower Education Trust was founded in 1999 to inspire young people into STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) through the unique challenge of designing, building and racing an electric street car.
  • The event in Hull on April 28 is hosted by Greenpower and Green Port Hull, which is supported by the Regional Growth Fund, and will feature three race categories contested on a 1km track:
    • Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) Formula Goblin for nine to 11-year-olds tackling drag and slalom challenges;
    • IET Formula 24 for 11 to 16-year-olds taking part in two 90-minute endurance races;
    • IET Formula 24+ is a one-hour race for 16 to 25-year-olds.

Magnificent seven shine in EV street event

Press releases

Car designs included a bear and cannon while one school recycled the packaging their car was delivered in to make its bodywork as the pupils and students took part in a range of colourful events from drag races to a 90-minute endurance event on a special street circuit in the centre of Hull.

All seven built their cars in the build up to the race thanks to funding from Drax Group, which provided the kits to build the cars and all the necessary tools.

The £35,000 initiative from Drax is part of its efforts to inspire more children to study STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects and create the skilled workforce of the future that the Northern Powerhouse needs.

Selby Abbey Primary School’s car ‘The Cannon’ – named after their teacher Stacey Cannon by the pupils.

Engineers and staff from the power station also joined in, spending time with each of the teams to help assemble the cars ahead of today’s race, organised by the Greenpower Education Trust and sponsored by Drax.

Drax Power CEO Andy Koss said:

“The commitment from the schools has been exceptional – it’s really sparked the students’ imaginations, which is what this project is all about.

“Finding fun and exciting projects like this to engage young people and encourage them to study STEM subjects is the key to ensuring the next generation of potential employees has the skills that innovative businesses like ours need.”

He added:

“Too many children in the North are falling behind their counterparts in other areas of the UK when it comes to education and skills, leading to a serious skills shortage for employers. We want to change that with initiatives like this one.”

Pupils from Selby Abbey Primary School meet Lord Prescott prior to their race.

Stacey Cannon, a teacher at Selby Abbey Primary, whose pupils named their car The Cannon in her honour, said:

“I’m really proud of them all and the effort they have put in to this and I’m proud to see the car out there with my name on it.

“I think they have grown so much through this especially in relation to the STEM subjects. We’ve taught all subjects for the past few weeks by using the car and, as a teacher, it will hopefully open their minds to the world of engineering.”

ENDS

Media contacts:

Mark Duffell
MCD Communications Ltd
E: [email protected]
T: 07969080272

Jessica Gorton
Drax Group Press Officer
E: [email protected]
T: 07712677177

Main image caption: Selby College student Sam Bygrave races the college’s F24 in a 60-minute endurance race

Notes to Editors

  • Four primary schools – Barwic Parade, Camblesforth, Selby Community and Selby Abbey – received a 15mph Goblin G2 battery-powered car, which students and teachers then assembled.
  • Older students from Selby High School, Holy Family Catholic High School and Selby College built the more powerful Formula 24 car, which can reach speeds of up to 30mph.
  • Both cars took around 15 hours to build, with the teams also designing their own bodywork.
  • The primary school teams took part in a series of drag and slalom races in their Goblin cars. The top drivers from each team then raced against each other in a final 1km circuit through the city centre.
  • Students from the secondary schools and colleges raced the F24 cars around the same circuit in an endurance test. The teams had to switch between three drivers and maintain their cars during the race and the winner was the team which completed the most laps in 90 minutes.

About Drax

Drax Group’s ambition is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future. Its 2,600-strong staff 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 flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity generation assets across Britain. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies six 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.

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.  It also owns and operates four gas power stations in England.

B2B supply:  

Drax owns two B2B energy supply businesses:

  • Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity and energy services to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.
  • Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity, energy services and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

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

About Greenpower

  • The Greenpower Education Trust was founded in 1999 to inspire young people into STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) through the unique challenge of designing, building and racing an electric street car.
  • The event in Hull on April 28 is hosted by Greenpower and Green Port Hull, which is supported by the Regional Growth Fund, and will feature three race categories contested on a 1km track:
    • Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) Formula Goblin for nine to 11-year-olds tackling drag and slalom challenges;
    • IET Formula 24 for 11 to 16-year-olds taking part in two 90-minute endurance races;
    • IET Formula 24+ is a one-hour race for 16 to 25-year-olds.

Drax revs up businesses with bespoke EV services

Press releases

Drax’s first EV customer, SES Water, has invested in 16 new charging points and is initially replacing 10 of its 120 strong fleet of diesel vans with electric vehicles. The switch will result in a carbon saving of 43 tonnes of CO2 per year and is another significant step forward in SES Water’s environmental commitments which last year saw the company switch to 100 per cent renewable electricity.

The comprehensive service provided to SES Water by Haven Power, part of Drax Group, includes charging infrastructure and operating software, the leasing of EVs, supporting devices such as vehicle telematics, and the renewable electricity needed to power the vehicles.

Drax, which is the biggest supplier of renewable electricity to businesses in the UK, will also supply SES Water with telematic systems to allow usage data from the trial to be monitored, paving the way for a broader roll out plan and potential ‘vehicle to grid’ trials at SES Water.

Henrietta Stock, Energy and Carbon Manager at SES Water said:

“Every day we use enough energy to power 13,000 homes so we are always looking at ways to balance the environmental impact of our essential activities and support the investment in renewable generation in the UK. We have already significantly reduced our carbon emissions over the last year and working with Drax has enabled us to create a bespoke EV solution so we can understand exactly how to save the most energy, further lowering both our carbon emissions and our costs”.

The service Drax is providing includes expert advice to determine what kind of vehicles and systems will work best for customers, analysis of different charging methods to minimise fleet downtime as well as data to help companies use their fleet efficiently.

Jonathan Kini, Drax Retail CEO, said:

“We know from supplying energy to our customers that no two businesses are alike, so a ‘one size fits all’ approach won’t deliver what they all need.

“Instead, we are working with customers like SES Water as an energy partner, to offer each of them a solution tailored to their specific needs. Giving them the optimal EV package will result in lower carbon emissions and costs, helping them to grow better businesses.” 

Jonathan Kini, Drax Retail CEO

High resolution image (above): DOWNLOAD

According to research from Arval so far in the UK just 14% of businesses have switched at least one vehicle to electric. However, this is set to increase to 42% within 3 years.

Jonathan Kini added:

“EVs are still a relatively new technology and making the switch can be daunting. We can take the stress out of the process, so customers have confidence that the decisions they’re making will be good for the environment, as well as their business.”

As the UK power system continues to decarbonise, EVs are better than ever for reducing carbon emissions, making a greater contribution to global efforts to tackle climate change.

ENDS

Main image caption: L-R, Jonathan Kini, Drax Retail CEO, Adam Hall, Drax Electric Vehicle Lead, Henrietta Stock, SES Water Energy and Carbon Manager, Tom Kelly, SES Water Wholesale Director and Andy Davidson, SES Water Fleet Manager.

High resolution image (main photo): DOWNLOAD

Notes to Editors

Drax’s end-to-end Electric Vehicle proposition for businesses aims to make switching to EVs simple and easy for customers.

The service includes:

  • Site assessment and civil work
  • EV charging infrastructure
  • Charging operating software
  • Lease of EVs
  • Vehicle telematics (e.g. GPS devices)
  • Renewable electricity to supply vehicles

The Drax EV service includes the supply of 100% renewable energy from Haven Power.

Drax Group includes Haven Power and Opus Energy, making it the biggest supplier of renewable electricity to businesses in the UK.

In 2018, 69% of the 17.9TWh of power it sold to businesses was renewable.

Media contacts:

Ali Lewis
Drax Group Interim Head of Media & PR
E: [email protected]
T: 07712670888

Jessica Gorton
Drax Group Press Officer
E: [email protected]
T: 07712 677 177

General Enquiries:

Adam Hall
Drax Group EV Lead
E: [email protected]
T: 07736298171

About Drax:

Drax Group’s ambition is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future. Its 2,600-strong staff 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 flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity generation assets across Britain. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies six 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.

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.  It also owns and operates four gas power stations in England.

B2B supply:  

Drax owns two B2B energy supply businesses:

  • Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity and energy services to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.
  • Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity, energy services and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

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

About SES Water

SES Water supplies water to approximately 707,000 people in east Surrey, and parts of West Sussex, west Kent and south London. Our supply area is 322 square miles (835 sq km) extending from Morden and South Croydon in the north to Gatwick Airport in the south and from Cobham, Leatherhead and Dorking in the west to Edenbridge and Bough Beech in the east. Groundwater supplies provide 85 per cent of our water, with 15 per cent being extracted from one reservoir at Bough Beech near Edenbridge. For more information visit www.seswater.co.uk.