Archives: Press Release

Drax apprentice evening inspires the next generation

7 December 2018

Press releases

More than 160 students and parents attended the event at Drax Power Station, near Selby in North Yorkshire, to find out more about working at the site, which is the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

It was the first time the power station had held an event of this kind and it comes as it plans to increase the number of training roles available next year from nine to 12 – meaning it will have doubled the number of apprenticeships offered in the space of just two years.

Andy Koss, Drax Power CEO, said:

“This event is helping us to build on our long-standing commitment to promoting education and skills in the North of England. Every business in the Northern Powerhouse region has a role to play in creating opportunities for young people and raising aspirations – encouraging them to develop the skills they’ll need in the future.

“Seeing so many young people attending events like this shows how important apprenticeships are to students, as well as to businesses like ours. Our apprentices are the rising stars at Drax – they’re the key to the long-term success of the business. An apprenticeship is a brilliant way to begin a career in a variety of roles here.”

The students who attended the open evening, most of whom were in their GCSE year, met with some of the current apprentices at the power station to hear about their experiences.

The mainly 15 and 16-year-old students were also able to sample a virtual tour of the power station and attend workshops on interview techniques and CV writing.

Resourcing manager Shelley Lawton, from Drax’s HR team, said the evening showcased the career opportunities at the site, which offers apprenticeships in both technical and office-based roles.

The event was part of Drax’s long-established community programme and commitment to learning and skills. It aimed to help students with their applications regardless of whether they’re planning to go on to further studies or pursue jobs at Drax, or elsewhere.

Shelley said:

“The evening was a real success and we hope to make it an annual event. The students were really engaged and had some excellent discussions with our current apprentices and staff members.

“Our 2019 apprenticeship scheme opens to applications in a couple of weeks. We’re looking forward to meeting our next generation of new starters who will help to continue to build our business.

“We hope the CV skills and interview technique workshops were useful to everyone who attended – whatever they plan to do after school. Not all of them will apply for a role at Drax but, hopefully, they’ll have learnt new skills which will help them to be successful in the roles they apply for in the future.”

Nine engineering apprentices began their careers at the Selby-based power station in September, a 50% increase on apprentice numbers on previous years as Drax continues to invest in and promote STEM skills. Twelve apprentice roles will be available in 2019.

The energy firm also sponsors a number of PhDs at Sheffield University, producing cutting-edge research into areas such as the impact of human behaviour on vehicle to grid technologies where, in the future, electric cars could store and discharge power back to the grid to support the electricity system.

Drax will be accepting applications for technical apprenticeships from December 19 until January 31 with further opportunities in business support areas, such as finance and business administration, becoming available throughout the year. Drax is keen to attract applications from people of all backgrounds and to encourage diversity.

More information about apprenticeships is available on the Drax website.

ENDS

Media contacts:

Jessica Gorton
Drax Group Press Officer
[email protected]
+44 (0) 7712677177

Ali Lewis
Drax Group Interim Head of Media & PR
E: [email protected]
T: +44 (0) 7712670888

About Drax

Drax Group plc plays a vital role in helping change the way energy is generated, supplied and used. Its 2,300-strong staff operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production.

The Group includes:

Drax Power Ltd, which operates the largest power station in the UK, based at Selby, North Yorkshire and supplies six percent of the country’s electricity needs. The energy firm converted from burning coal to become a predominantly biomass-fuelled electricity generator. Drax is the biggest renewable generator in the UK and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.

Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

Drax Biomass, is based in the US and manufactures compressed wood pellets produced from sustainably managed working forests, supplying fuel 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

UK among world leaders in global energy revolution

5 December 2018

Press releases

  • The UK ranks 2nd in a global league of countries using technologies to limit climate change

  • UK phase out of coal has been faster than any other country in the world, cutting the carbon emissions from its power system by more than twice as much as some other countries

  • However, the UK has no large-scale carbon capture facilities, which are critical to climate targets being achieved

The UK is second only to Denmark when it comes to implementing measures to mitigate climate change, according to a new global energy revolution league table.

In the report Energy Revolution: A Global Outlook, researchers from Imperial College London have assessed 25 countries, covering 80% of the world’s population.

Launched today at the UN climate change conference in Katowice, Poland, the report looks at each country’s performance across five metrics, including:

  • Clean power
  • Fossil fuels
  • Uptake and sales of electric vehicles
  • Capacity for carbon storage
  • Energy efficiency of households, buildings and transport.

The UK’s carbon price – its charge on greenhouse gas emissions which is stronger than elsewhere in Europe – has led to rapid deployment of renewables and the fastest phase out of coal power, making for world-leading progress in reducing the carbon emissions from power generation.

Whilst most countries have reduced the amount of carbon dioxide produced per kWh of electricity by 100g/ kWh over the last decade, the figure in the UK is more than double that at 260g/kWh.

Uptake of electric vehicles is also among the highest in the UK, which is home to the world’s 5th largest electric vehicle fleet.

However, progress in the UK is being hampered by the fact it lags behind on the provision of large-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) facilities, needed to limit the harmful greenhouse gases accumulating in the atmosphere.

The research was conducted by Imperial College London and E4tech, facilitated by Imperial Consultants and commissioned by Drax Group.

Figure 1: Ranking of country progress in the energy revolution

Responding to the findings Will Gardiner, Drax Group CEO, said:

“Our global economy is changing and the transition to zero carbon, lower cost energy is vital if countries are to be able to compete.

“At Drax, we’ve converted two thirds of our power station to use biomass instead of coal, transforming the business to become Europe’s biggest decarbonisation project and helping to make the phase out of coal in the UK the fastest in the world. But we want to do more.

“We’re piloting the first Bioenergy Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) project of its kind in Europe – which could make Drax the world’s first carbon negative power station. Removal of carbon from the atmosphere is vital if we are to meet our climate targets.”

Commenting on his team’s findings, Imperial’s Dr Iain Staffell, said:

“We researched how the world is progressing on uptake of the five key technologies and measures needed to limit climate change to 2 degrees Celsius. This reveals Denmark, UK and Canada to be world leading.

“Progress across these five areas is very mixed.  Great strides are being made in cleaning up global electricity generation, and renewable capacity is increasing rapidly all around the world.  Electric vehicles are also rapidly taking off, but still have only reached a 5% share of new cars sold in two countries.  Improving the efficiency of our homes and industries needs urgent effort.  Significant investment in Carbon Capture and Storage will also be needed if it is to contribute to limiting climate change, as only 6 countries are currently demonstrating this technology at scale.”

Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry, said:

“This confirms the UK’s position as a world leader in decarbonising the economy – phasing out coal as we move to a greener, cleaner energy system with record levels of energy from renewables. We have also led the way in transitioning to low emission vehicles and today one in five electric vehicles sold in Europe is manufactured here in the UK.

“But we’re determined to do more to reduce our emissions. That’s why last week we published plans for the UK’s first carbon capture, usage and storage project to be operational in the mid-2020s with the ambition of potentially rolling out this cutting-edge technology at scale in 2030s.”

Commenting on the findings, Alyssa Gilbert, Director of Policy and Translation from Imperial’s Grantham Institute, said:

“Ahead of COP24, this research provides a useful barometer of the progress countries are making in their uptake of technologies such as renewable power, Carbon Capture and Storage, electric vehicles, and energy efficiency measures.

“The findings also highlight the benefit of supportive government policies in limiting climate change to 2 degrees Celsius.” 

Calls for Carbon Capture and Storage

The UK lags behind on roll-out of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technologies. Only Norway, Canada, Australia, USA, Brazil and China currently have facilities to capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere at scale, and worldwide only 2.5 kg of CO2 per person per year is captured, versus an average annual carbon footprint per person of 5 tonnes of CO2.

Storage resources are not the barrier to deployment. The International Energy Agency estimates that 100 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide must be stored underground by 2060 to limit temperature rise to 2°C for least cost. USA alone has estimated storage capacity for over 100 trillion tonnes of carbon, and the UK has capacity for 70 billion tonnes.

Instead the barriers are political. USA benefits from tax credits that have been in place since 2008 for geological storage of carbon and China’s last two Five Year Plans have included specific goals to develop CCS. With most estimates outlining that significant CCS deployment is needed to limit the impact of climate change, the UK needs large scale deployment of the technology to remain a world leader in environmental progress.

Wider report findings

  • The UK and Denmark lead global efforts to move away from coal for power generation. But many Asian countries including Indonesia, India and Japan are increasing their reliance on fossil fuels. The countries with the cleanest power systems – Norway, France and New Zealand rely heavily on hydro or nuclear power.
  • The UK is home to the world’s 5th largest electric vehicle fleet, and 1 in every 40 new cars sold in the UK is electric. But Norway leads by far in terms of uptake of electric vehicles with half of all its cars now electric. Norway also leads in installation of car charging points with one charger for every 500 people, in the UK there is one charger for every 5,000 people.
  • Europe remains the global leader in energy efficient housing. Residential homes in Portugal, Germany, Netherlands and the UK are among the most energy efficient. By comparison, rising incomes mean China and South Africa are increasing their energy intensity.
  • The study shows that rising incomes across the BRIC economies are displacing public transport as populations with rising disposable incomes move towards private vehicles. As a result, China, India and Indonesia have increased their energy consumption per person in transport by over 50% over the last decade.

Figure 2: Current large-scale carbon capture capacity (in kg/CO2 per person per year)

ENDS

Media contacts

Rachel Adeyinka
E: [email protected]
T: +44 (0)7940 177 999

Josh Harvey
E: [email protected]
T: +44 (0)7714 162 783

Editor’s Notes

  • Energy Revolution: A Global Outlook was commissioned by Drax Group and conducted independently by academics from Imperial College London, and consultants from E4tech, facilitated through the College’s consultancy company – Imperial Consultants.
  • View and download the report: https://www.drax.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Energy-Revolution-Global-Outlook-Report-Final-Dec-2018-COP24.pdf
  • The measures used to assess the state of transition in the global energy system to achieve climate targets are:
    • Clean power: low carbon electricity generation, including renewables, biomass and nuclear
    • Phase-out of fossil fuels
    • Electrification of passenger vehicles
    • Carbon Capture and Storage
    • Improved efficiency across the economy
  • Country selection was based on including all G7 and BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) countries. The remaining countries were selected based on their membership to the IEA/OECD and/or their geographical location. Some countries could not be included due to limited data availability.
  • The results presented are based on data collected from other sources, as opposed to internal modelling.

About Drax

Drax Group plc plays a vital role in helping change the way energy is generated, supplied and used. Its 2,300-strong staff operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production.

The Group includes:

Drax Power Ltd, which operates the largest power station in the UK, based at Selby, North Yorkshire and supplies six percent of the country’s electricity needs. The energy firm converted from burning coal to become a predominantly biomass-fuelled electricity generator. Drax is the biggest renewable generator in the UK and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.

Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

Drax Biomass, is based in the US and manufactures compressed wood pellets produced from sustainably managed working forests, supplying fuel 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

Imperial Consultants provide access to over 4,000 research-active expert academics and Imperial College London’s state of the art facilities to deliver innovative solutions to meet the business needs of industry, government and the third sector. Founded in 1990, Imperial Consultants is the wholly owned consultancy company of Imperial College London.

E4tech is a strategic energy consultancy. Founded in 1997 the firm provides technically informed insight on the energy transition and its implications on companies, governments and investors.

Doosan Babcock strengthens partnership with Drax Power Limited

30 November 2018

Press releases

The deal, worth at least £60 million, continues to cement the strong relationship between both companies dating back to the construction of the plant near Selby, Yorkshire which was started 50 years ago.

The new four year partnership, with the option for a further four years, will strengthen workforce collaboration and improve efficiencies in maintaining and extending the life of the plant which is responsible for providing 7% of the UK’s electricity.

As Drax Power moves towards a low carbon future, Doosan Babcock will continue to be a strategic partner in the evolution of this critical national asset.

Andy Colquhoun, CEO of Doosan Babcock commented:

“Drax Power is one of the most progressive and innovative companies in the global energy sector so we are delighted to deepen our strategic relationship. This new agreement provides a platform for further collaboration in the years ahead as Drax continue to invest and evolve their assets.

“We have a long and proud history with Drax, from supplying the original boilers over 40 years ago, to supporting Drax as it transforms its business to meet the demands of the modern energy market.

“This agreement is testament to the hard work and dedication of our team, consistently delivering exceptional performance. Just recently we passed the milestone of over 3 million man-hours achieved over 9 outages without a Lost Time Incident dating back to 2014. I would also like to thank the Drax team for their support and dedication in the development of this new contract”

Andy Koss, Drax Power CEO, said:

“It’s vital that Drax continues to operate as reliably and flexibly as possible for the millions of homes and businesses which rely on the electricity we produce.

“This new contract will bring a closer working relationship with the Doosan Babcock team, delivering efficiencies whilst maintaining the high quality of work and standards of service required to maintain the UK’s biggest power station.

“We have converted two thirds of the power station to use biomass instead of coal, transforming the business to become the UK’s biggest renewable power generator and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

“This, along with our plans to repower our remaining coal units to use high efficiency gas, is preserving the future of the power station and protecting jobs – our operations support 5,700 jobs across the North and generate £600m for the regional economy.”  

Background

Doosan Babcock has supported Drax throughout the full lifecycle in helping to build, maintain and extend the life of Drax Power Station. As the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) of the boilers, Doosan Babcock played a critical role in an unprecedented construction project which involved a workforce peaking at around 8000.

In 2003 Drax Power Station started co-firing biomass as a renewable energy alternative to coal. Doosan Babcock has supported Drax with research and development of biomass firing equipment through to the full project delivery of key technologies in this conversion process.

Drax’s biomass conversion project was one of the largest power plant modernisation programmes in UK history. Drax committed to transforming the business into a mainly biomass-fuelled generator using compressed wood pellets in place of coal.

During the summer this year a fourth generating unit was converted from coal to use biomass – enabling Drax to generate more renewable power at the times the grid needs it the most. Around 70% of the power produced by Drax is now renewable, enough for four million households.

Drax Power also plans to repower the remaining two coal units to use high efficiency gas turbine technology and build up to 200MW of battery storage on site to provide additional flexibility. If these plans are approved, Drax could stop using coal as soon as 2023 – well ahead of the government’s 2025 deadline for unabated coal to no longer be used in power generation. Doosan Babcock will continue to support Drax throughout this transition.

Ends

Contact

Mark McDiarmid
Communications Manager, Doosan Babcock
E: [email protected]
T: 0141 885 3075

Notes to Editors

About Doosan Babcock

Doosan Babcock is a specialist in the delivery of engineering, aftermarket and upgrade services to the power generation, oil and gas, petrochemical and process sectors. With a focus on the delivery of low-carbon technologies and an industry-leading project management capability, the company builds, maintains and extends the life of customer assets worldwide.

For more information about Doosan Babcock, please visit www.doosanbabcock.com

About Drax

Drax Group plc plays a vital role in helping change the way energy is generated, supplied and used. Its 2,300-strong staff operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production.

The Group includes:

Drax Power Ltd, which operates the largest power station in the UK, based at Selby, North Yorkshire and supplies seven per cent of the country’s electricity needs. The energy firm converted from burning coal to become a predominantly biomass-fueled electricity generator. Drax is the biggest renewable power generator in the UK and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.

Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

Drax Biomass, is based in the US and manufactures compressed wood pellets produced from sustainably managed working forests, supplying fuel 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

Energy and Clean Growth Minister visits innovative carbon capture pilot at Drax

29 November 2018

Press releases

It is the first of its kind in Europe and could enable Drax to become the first carbon negative power station in the world.

BECCS has been identified as an essential technology for achieving global climate targets and the UK government announced new plans for developing CCS at the first ever world summit on CCS held in Edinburgh this week.

L-R: C-Capture project Engineers Duncan Holdsworth and Fatima Bilal, Drax Research and Innovation Engineer Carl Clayton and Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry

Drax has invested £400,000 in its BECCS pilot, which uses technology developed by Leeds University spin out company C-Capture, and is expected to capture a tonne of carbon dioxide a day during the six month project.

If successful and the technology is scaled up, it could enable Drax to achieve negative emissions – meaning the power it produces would reduce the amount of carbon dioxide accumulating in the atmosphere; vital in tackling climate change.

During her visit to Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire, the minister met the team behind the innovative project and heard about the commissioning of the plant, which got underway this week, and coincided with the 10th anniversary of the Climate Change Act.

Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry

Energy and Clean Growth Minister, Claire Perry, said:

“This major milestone in developing cutting-edge technology to reduce emissions while growing the economy shows our modern Industrial Strategy in action.

“Backed by government funded innovation, Drax has helped put the UK on the map when it comes to carbon capture ahead of pivotal talks with global leaders in Edinburgh this week, which aim to supercharge the global deployment of this game-changing technology.”

This project at Drax is already helping to put the UK on the map when it comes to carbon capture. The development of this cutting-edge technology to reduce emissions while growing the economy shows our modern Industrial Strategy in action. It is game-changing technology, which is why we need to supercharge its deployment.”

The government announced it was providing £20m to develop carbon capture equipment at industrial sites, as well as plans to repurpose fossil fuel infrastructure, such as reusing old gas pipelines to transport carbon, at the CCS summit in Edinburgh this week.

L-R: Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner, Drax Power CEO Andy Koss, Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry, C-Capture Chairman Tristan Fischer and Drax Head of Research and Innovation Jason Shipstone

The project at Drax includes the use of equipment no longer used to control sulphur on four of the generating units at the power station which have been upgraded to use sustainable biomass, instead of coal. This is because the wood pellets used to generate renewable power, produce minimal levels of sulphur.

Since upgrading two thirds of the power station to use biomass instead of coal, Drax has become the UK’s largest renewable power generator and the biggest decarbonisation project in Europe.

ENDS

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: 07712677177

Editor’s Notes

L-R: Drax Power CEO Andy Koss, Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner, Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry, C-Capture Chairman Tristan Fischer and Drax Head of Research and Innovation Jason Shipstone

  • Drax Power Station is the single largest user of sustainable biomass for power in the world – around 70% of the electricity it produces is renewable, enough to power four million households.
  • Biomass, such as sustainably sourced compressed wood pellets, is a renewable fuel – the CO2 captured  when it grew is equal to the emissions it releases when used to generate electricity so it does not contribute new carbon to the biosphere. When coupled with CCS, the overall process of biomass electricity generation removes more CO2 from the atmosphere than it releases.
  • The government’s Clean Growth Strategy identified ‘sustainable biomass power stations used in tandem with CCUS technology’ as a potential route to achieving long-term decarbonisation between now and 2050.
  • Drax is in discussions with the British Beer and Pub Association to see if it could help keep the fizz in the drinks industry as part of its efforts to ensure the carbon captured during the BECCS pilot project is used in another process or industry.
  • C-Capture is a spin out from the Chemistry Department at Leeds University and has attracted support from IP Group, the Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy’s Energy Entrepreneurs Fund and the CO2 Capture Project for CO2 capture technology, which has potential in a range of areas including biogas upgrading, natural gas sweetening and hydrogen production.

L-R: C-Capture Chairman Tristan Fischer, Drax Power CEO Andy Koss, Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry, Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner and Drax Head of Research and Innovation Jason Shipstone

About Drax

Drax Group plc plays a vital role in helping change the way energy is generated, supplied and used. Its 2,300-strong staff operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production.

The Group includes:

Drax Power Ltd, which operates the largest power station in the UK, based at Selby, North Yorkshire and supplies six percent of the country’s electricity needs. The energy firm converted from burning coal to become a predominantly biomass-fuelled electricity generator. Drax is the biggest renewable generator in the UK and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.

Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

Drax Biomass, is based in the US and manufactures compressed wood pellets produced from sustainably managed working forests, supplying fuel 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 comments on European carbon pricing declaration

27 November 2018

Press releases

“Robust carbon pricing is one of the most effective tools to enabling a zero carbon, lower cost energy future. 

Will Gardiner, CEO, Drax Group

“Since the introduction of the UK’s carbon floor price in 2013, coal use has reduced by almost 75% and renewables capacity has tripled. 

“Going forward, it is vital that Governments across Europe and the EU target a strengthened carbon price in order to meet our Paris Agreement climate change targets.”

Download the declaration.

Drax apprentices shine at awards

26 November 2018

Press releases

Mechanical craftsperson Jack Bailey, from Pontefract, shared the Year 4 award with Jack Morris, from Doncaster. The judges said it was ‘impossible’ to decide between them, as they had both been outstanding throughout their entire four-year apprenticeship. Both winners will now continue their careers with Drax in the engineering department.

Jack Bailey, 20, also took home the Paul Chambers Outstanding Achievement Award.

He said:

“It’s just been an incredible night. Winning one award was a great feeling but to win two is just amazing.”

Jack Morris, also 20, added:

“It’s a fantastic feeling to know that we’ve been selected out of all the really good apprentices there are. I’ve still got lots to learn but it’s great experience. There’s so much technical ability at Drax to learn from, it’s a fantastic start for us all.”

Andy Koss, Drax Power CEO, said:

“Our apprentices are the future of our business and these award winners are our rising stars – their commitment, as well as the enthusiasm and talent they bring, is inspiring to see.

“An apprenticeship is a brilliant way to start a career in engineering. We’ve got lots of successful former apprentices working at Drax Power Station – there are engineers, section heads and department managers who all started out as apprentices.

“Investing in skills and the future of our people is vital not just for our business but for the Northern Powerhouse region and the UK as a whole. I’m looking forward to seeing all of our award winners continue to progress and develop their careers here at Drax.”

The awards event was held at Drax Sports and Social Club and was hosted by BBC Look North presenter Clare Frisby.

Other winners included:

  • Electrical craftsperson Jake Dawson, 21, from Carlton, near Selby, who rounded off his first 12 months as an apprentice at Drax by being named the Year 1 Apprentice of the Year. He was praised for his work ethic and the reliability he had shown so early on in his career.
  • Electrical craftsperson Tom Glennon-Fell, 20, from Selby, who was named the Year 3 Apprentice of the Year, for his enthusiasm to learn and willingness to go the extra mile.
  • Thomas Hughes, 26, from Goole, who picked up the Business Apprentice of the Year Award for his work to support teams across Drax Group. Thomas was commended for his attention to detail and for consistently delivering good results.

Drax increased its intake of apprentices this year by almost 50%, with nine new starters getting the chance to learn a trade, develop new skills and launch their career in engineering at the Selby-based power station, the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

It will be accepting applications for technical apprenticeships in January with further opportunities in business support areas, such as finance and business administration, becoming available throughout the year. Drax is keen to attract applications from people of all backgrounds and to encourage diversity.

More information about apprenticeships is available on the Drax website.

– Ends –

Media contacts:

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

Mark Duffell
MCD Communications Ltd
E: [email protected]
T: 01484 968238
M: 07969 080272

Notes to editors:

The Drax Power Apprenticeship Awards recognise individuals who have excelled consistently throughout the year across all areas of their development, achieving high standards and results both academically and practically while also demonstrating a real determination to succeed.

The winners were carefully selected by a panel of managers and supervisors, the HR team at Drax and the Uniper Training Academy. The Uniper Training Academy is dedicated top inspiring and supporting engineers. They offer apprenticeship programmes to help gain experience in the sector. Drax has a partnership with the academy to train its technical apprentices.

The Overall Outstanding Achievement Award was named after Paul Chambers for the first time in 2017. Paul was a lead engineer in the safety team at Drax for more than ten years. He was heavily involved in the apprenticeship scheme at Drax Power Station before he died in 2016.

Drax has a longstanding commitment to STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Maths) learning, with around 13,000 educational visits to the power station taking place each year.

These range from Primary School to degree level, and all visits are tailored to the level of the visiting school, college or university.

Schools and colleges interested in visiting Drax Power Station for a tour or hearing more about the outreach work it does with educational establishments, should contact [email protected].

Drax and STEM Learning

Drax has a longstanding commitment to STEM learning, with around 20,000 educational visits to the power station taking place in 2017. These range from Primary School to degree level, and all visits are tailored to the level of the visiting school, college or university.

To find out more about working at Drax, go to www.drax.com/careers/

Photo caption:

Thomas Hughes (back) – Business Apprentice of the Year

Jack Bailey (front) – Year 4 winner and Overall and recently qualified

Joe Gallagher – recently qualified

Tom Glennon-Fell – Year 3 winner

Daniel Riley – recently qualified

Jack Morris – Year 4 winner and recently qualified

Jake Dawson (front) – Year 1 winner

About Drax

Drax Group plc plays a vital role in helping change the way energy is generated, supplied and used. Its 2,300-strong staff operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production.

The Group includes:

Drax Power Ltd, which operates the largest power station in the UK, based at Selby, North Yorkshire and supplies six percent of the country’s electricity needs. The energy firm converted from burning coal to become a predominantly biomass-fuelled electricity generator. Drax is the biggest renewable generator in the UK and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.

Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

Drax Biomass, is based in the US and manufactures compressed wood pellets produced from sustainably managed working forests, supplying fuel 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

Santa to visit Drax as Christmas countdown begins

Press releases

A traditional Santa’s Grotto will be just one of the attractions for visitors to the site on Sunday 2nd and Sunday 9th December for the celebrations, which will also include the chance to make illuminated Christmas decorations and cards, ready for the big day.

Visitors will also get the chance to take part in face painting and a Christmas quiz trail around the Skylark nature reserve which forms part of the power station site, as well as viewing a traditional elves’ workshop.

The fun begins each Sunday at 11am and will continue till 4pm, with the last admission at 3.30pm.

The event is the latest community initiative by Selby-based Drax, the largest decarbonisation project in Europe, which sees around 13,000 visitors pass through its gates each year as it continues to grow in popularity as an alternative day trip destination.

Drax Power Station’s cooling towers in the snow, March 2018

Jane Breach, Community Engagement and Visitor Centre Team Leader at Drax, said:

“Last year’s event proved to be very popular and we’re expecting lots more visitors this year as the countdown to Christmas begins.

Download this poster

“We’ve got another fantastic series of events for everyone at the Skylark Centre and we’re looking forward to seeing everyone again this year to get us all in the festive mood. Christmas outfits are more than welcome!”

The Christmas event follows on from a successful spooky Hallowe’en Saturday at Drax where children and adults alike enjoyed activities such as slime making, an eerie quiz trail based on dead celebrities and a themed café offering refreshments.

Further details on upcoming community events, including the Christmas events are available from the Drax Facebook page at www.facebook.com/DraxGroup.

Anyone interested in visiting the power station can arrange this by going to the website at www.drax.com/visit-us. All tours are free and can be tailored to individual group requirements.

Drax, which recently converted the fourth of its six generating units from coal to renewable biomass, generates enough electricity each day to power more than six million homes.

The site’s 380-acre Skylark nature reserve is used regularly by visitors and school children to Drax’s visitor centre, to learn more about the energy produced there. 

– Ends –

Media contacts:

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

Mark Duffell
MCD Communications Ltd
E: [email protected]
T: 01484 968238
M: 07969 080272

Notes to editors:

About Drax

Drax Group plc plays a vital role in helping change the way energy is generated, supplied and used. Its 2,300-strong staff operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production.

The Group includes:

Drax Power Ltd, which operates the largest power station in the UK, based at Selby, North Yorkshire and supplies six percent of the country’s electricity needs. The energy firm converted from burning coal to become a predominantly biomass-fuelled electricity generator. Drax is the biggest renewable generator in the UK and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.

Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses.

Drax Biomass, is based in the US and manufactures compressed wood pellets produced from sustainably managed working forests, supplying fuel 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

 

Europe’s first bioenergy carbon capture and storage pilot now underway

Press releases

  • Commissioning of the BECCS pilot plant at Drax Power Station will begin on Monday November 26 – the tenth anniversary of the Climate Change Act

  • It puts Britain at the forefront of the race to develop BECCS and could enable Drax to become the world’s first carbon negative power station

The commissioning of an innovative Bioenergy Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) pilot plant at Drax Power Station has started with the first carbon dioxide expected to be captured in the coming weeks.

If successful, the six month pilot project will capture a tonne of CO2 a day from the gases produced when renewable power is generated using biomass at Drax – the UK’s biggest power station, near Selby in North Yorkshire.

BECCS is vital to global efforts to combat climate change because the technology will mean the gases that cause global warning can be removed from the atmosphere at the same time as electricity is produced. This means power generation would start to reduce the carbon accumulating in the atmosphere – vital for tackling climate change.

Drax is partnering with Leeds-based C-Capture and is investing £400,000 in what could be the first of several pilot projects undertaken at the power station to deliver a rapid, lower cost demonstration of BECCS.

Drax Power Station became the largest decarbonisation project in Europe by upgrading two thirds of its generating units to use biomass instead of coal and, if the BECCS pilot is successful, it will examine options for a similar re-purposing of existing infrastructure to deliver more carbon savings.

The Royal Society and Royal Academy of Engineering have estimated that BECCS could enable us to capture 50 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year by 2050 – approximately half the nation’s emissions target.

Will Gardiner, CEO, Drax Group, said:

“Our BECCS pilot project is the UK’s first step to delivering a key technology in the fight against climate change. If this project is successful, it could enable Drax to become the world’s first carbon negative power station – something many would never have dreamed possible a decade ago.

“Starting to commission the pilot plant on the tenth anniversary of the Climate Change Act demonstrates the progress made in decarbonising energy in the UK – but there is much more to do and this will be our focus at the Edinburgh CCS Summit later this week.

“At Drax we want to create a low carbon future – to do that we have to test the technologies that could allow us, as well as the UK and the world, to deliver negative emissions and start to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.”

L-R: Andy Koss Drax Power CEO, with Prof Chris Rayner, technical director, C-Capture Ltd (Foreground). Eva Penalver Garcia, Drax Group Research and Innovation Engineer and Rose McCarthy, C-Capture Chemist (middleground). Carl Clayton, Drax Research and Innovation engineer and the BECCS pilot project manager, with Caspar Schoolderman, Director of Engineering, C-Capture Ltd (background). Download high res photos here and here.

The government’s Clean Growth Strategy identified BECCS as one of several greenhouse gas removal technologies that could remove emissions from the atmosphere and help achieve long term decarbonisation.

Energy & Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry said:

“This major milestone in developing cutting-edge technology to reduce emissions while growing the economy shows our modern Industrial Strategy in action.

“Backed by government funded innovation, Drax has helped put the UK on the map when it comes to carbon capture ahead of pivotal talks with global leaders in Edinburgh this week, which aim to supercharge the global deployment of this game-changing technology.”

Over the summer work was undertaken to ensure the solvent C-Capture has developed is compatible with the biomass flue gas at Drax Power Station. This was completed successfully along with a lab-scale study into the feasibility of re-utilising the flue gas desulphurisation (FGD) absorbers at the power station.

FGD equipment is vital for reducing sulphur emissions from coal, but it is no longer required to control sulphur on four of the generating units at Drax that have been upgraded to use biomass, because the wood pellets used produce minimal levels of sulphur.

The C-Capture team has now proceeded to the second phase of the pilot, with the installation of a demonstration unit. Once commissioned it will isolate the carbon dioxide produced by the biomass combustion.

Chris Rayner, founder of C-Capture and Professor of Organic Chemistry at the University of Leeds, said:

“It’s clear that BECCS is one of a very limited number of viable negative emissions technologies, and is vital if we are to reach our CO2 emissions targets, not just in the UK, but around the World.”

“Being a key part of Europe’s first BECCS demonstration project is a great opportunity to showcase C-Capture’s technology, and through working with Drax, show how we can make a real impact on climate change.”

Caspar Schoolderman, Director of Engineering at C-Capture added:

“This is a very important milestone on the pathway to demonstrating and scaling up our exciting new technology. Working closely with the team from Drax has been a great experience, and we look forward to getting the demonstrator fully operational, and showing just how good our technology is.”

C-Capture is a spin-out from the Department of Chemistry at the University of Leeds, established through funding from IP Group Plc.

ENDS

Media contacts:

Ali Lewis
Drax Group Interim Head of Media and PR
E: [email protected]
T: 07712 670888

Jessica Gorton
Drax Group Press Officer
E: [email protected]
T: 07712 677177

Animation: https://vimeo.com/draxgroup/beccs

Editor’s Notes

  • Drax Power Station is the single largest user of sustainable biomass for power in the world – around 70% of the electricity it produces is renewable, enough to power four million households.
  • Biomass, such as sustainably sourced compressed wood pellets, is a renewable fuel – the CO2 captured  when it grew is equal to the emissions it releases when used to generate electricity so it does not contribute new carbon to the biosphere. When coupled with CCS, the overall process of biomass electricity generation removes more CO2 from the atmosphere than it releases.
  • The government’s Clean Growth Strategy identified ‘sustainable biomass power stations used in tandem with CCUS technology’ as a potential route to achieving long-term decarbonisation between now and 2050.
  • Drax is in discussions with the British Beer and Pub Association to see if it could help keep the fizz in the drinks industry as part of its efforts to ensure the carbon captured during the BECCS pilot project is used in another process or industry.
  • C-Capture is a spin out from the Chemistry Department at Leeds University and has attracted support from IP Group, the Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy’s Energy Entrepreneurs Fund and the CO2 Capture Project for CO2 capture technology, which has potential in a range of areas including biogas upgrading, natural gas sweetening and hydrogen production.

 

About Drax

Drax Group plc plays a vital role in helping change the way energy is generated, supplied and used. Its 2,300-strong staff operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production.

The Group includes:

Drax Power Ltd, which operates the largest power station in the UK, based at Selby, North Yorkshire and supplies seven per cent of the country’s electricity needs. The energy firm converted from burning coal to become a predominantly biomass-fueled electricity generator. Drax is the biggest renewable power generator in the UK and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Haven Power, based in Ipswich, supplies electricity to large Industrial and Commercial sector businesses.

Opus Energy, based in Oxford, Northampton and Cardiff, provides electricity and gas to small and medium sized (SME) businesses. 

Drax Biomass, is based in the US and manufactures compressed wood pellets produced from sustainably managed working forests, supplying fuel 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 C-Capture

C-Capture Ltd utilise their extensive knowledge of CO2 (carbon dioxide) based chemistry and engineering, to develop solvent systems for the removal of CO2 from gas streams with the potential to capture the CO2 in a form suitable for storage, and prevent it from entering the Earth’s atmosphere.

C-Capture‘s proprietary technology aims to remove or ‘scrub’ CO2 from large scale point sources of gas emissions. This is important for a broad range of commercially and environmentally relevant areas.

The low cost, high energy efficiency of C-Capture’s solvents help minimise the cost of CCS implementation and makes electricity generation with CCS a much more affordable, environmentally beneficial process.

C-Capture Ltd is a spin-out company from the Chemistry Department at the University of Leeds, and has attracted support from IP Group, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s, Energy Entrepreneurs Fund, and the CO2 Capture Project, for development of CO2 capture technology, which has potential in a range of areas, including biogas upgrading, natural gas sweetening and hydrogen production. It was also the National Winner of Shell Springboard 2016, competition for low carbon businesses.

For more information visit www.c-capture.co.uk

About the University of Leeds

The University of Leeds has created more than 100 spin-out companies, with a market capitalisation in excess of £500 million. Seven of these spin-out companies are market listed on AIM, which is more than any other university in the UK. The University is also home to the EPSRC funded Centre for Doctoral Training in Bioenergy, and has extensive experience in energy research through the interdisciplinary Energy Leeds initiative.

The University is preparing to launch its £40m Nexus innovation and enterprise centre later this year. Nexus will provide business and industry with easy access to world-leading academic experts and their ground-breaking research, high quality facilities and cutting edge equipment at the University.

For more information visit www.leeds.ac.uk

Smart Green Shipping Alliance partners with Drax and Ultrabulk to cut shipping supply chain emissions

20 November 2018

Press releases

Drax, operator of the UK’s largest power station, is partnering with the Smart Green Shipping Alliance (SSGA), leading dry bulk cargo transporter Ultrabulk, and Humphreys Yacht Design, naval architects of Dame Ellen McArthur’s ‘Kingfisher’ yacht, to tackle the mounting issue of CO2 emissions from the shipping industry.

A £100,000 12-month feasibility study funded by InnovateUK, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) and private investors has begun, which will examine the potential of fitting an innovative sail technology called Fastrig onto Ultrabulk ships importing biomass into the UK, for cutting both carbon emissions and costs.

The shipping industry emits roughly 3% of global CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions (CO2-equivalent), or approximately 1 billion tonnes of CO2 and other GHGs per year.  That’s over twice as much as the UK’s total emissions, from all sources.

Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire has transformed its business having converted two thirds of the power station to use biomass instead of coal – it is now Europe’s biggest decarbonisation project. Last year, it imported 6.8 million tonnes of the compressed wood pellets in 221 deliveries to the ports of Immingham, Hull, Tyne and Liverpool, to enable it to generate 14% of the UK’s renewable electricity.

Using biomass at Drax has delivered carbon savings of more than 80% compared to coal – this includes supply chain emissions, but shipping remains one of the most carbon intensive parts of the biomass supply chain. Drax’s desire to drive down emissions even further enabled Smart Green Shipping to partner with an ‘end user’ looking for the lowest carbon cargo provider.

Diane Gilpin, CEO and Founder of Smart Green Shipping Alliance said:

“This is a project that could really make a difference to the way the industry operates. Drax’s determination to cut carbon emissions creates real demand. Reducing emissions is good business, it saves costs and improves long-term operational certainty. This study aims to find the ‘sweet spot’ between reducing emissions and saving fuel costs.

“We’re engaging across shipping, working with port owners, shipbuilders, cargo owners’, and financiers to design pragmatic and effective new systems solutions. The prototypes we’re looking to develop are really exciting. A 21st century sailing-hybrid ship will look as much like the Cutty Sark as a Tesla does a Model T Ford.”

Gilpin is an expert on the UK government’s Clean Maritime Council, which will devise a strategy to reduce emissions from the shipping sector.

UK Shipping Minister Nusrat Ghani said at the Council’s inaugural meeting:

“The Clean Maritime Plan will bring new opportunities for Britain’s businesses to design, develop and sell green solutions to this global challenge.”

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner said:

“Smart Green Shipping Alliance’s pioneering efforts to deliver cleaner, greener transportation could help achieve the clean growth required for the UK to meet its climate targets. If we’re serious about meeting those targets, decarbonising transportation is the next big challenge.

“The combination of green shipping with renewables makes an even greater contribution to decarbonisation globally. This is a key development in achieving Drax’s aim – to deliver a zero carbon, low cost future for all.”

The innovation leads on the project, Rob and Tom Humphreys of Humphreys Yacht Design, explained how their team’s background in ocean racing has helped them to make technical advances in an industry that has used the same technology for the past century.

Tom said, “Transferring knowledge and technologies from offshore yacht racing to improve the performance of commercial merchant ships mirrors the way Formula One drives design development in the automotive industry.

“We’ve worked on America’s Cup and Volvo Ocean Race campaigns, competing at the highest level. Applying this technology to the commercial shipping industry means that we are able to make very significant fuels saving advances”, said Rob

The first six months of the project will be a technical feasibility study, establishing the mechanical parameters for retrofitting the Fastrig solution onto ships. The next six months will focus on putting together a business case and calculating detailed costings for the project.  The aim is to retrofit a ship with the Fastrig technology – depending on the outcome of the feasibility study, the launch of the Commercial Demonstrator could be done as soon as 2021.

The technology could drive down not only carbon emissions but also cost. Diane Gilpin explained, “Fuel prices are vulnerable to oil market volatility, but once the technology is developed, wind is free at the point of use.  The first onshore wind turbines were single devices producing 45KW; now we’re seeing fleets of 10MW producing energy, without subsidy. We can expect to mirror that speed of transition in the shipping industry.”

The SGSA has been pioneering the uptake of renewables in the maritime industry since 2014, identifying wind power as the first choice of exploration. The long-term aim of the company is to develop commercially viable, zero-emission vessels. The eventual aim is to combine renewable energy from wind power with bio-fuels.

Per Lange, CEO of Ultrabulk said:

“We are very much looking forward to working with our partners at Drax and Smart Green Shipping Alliance. The feasibility study initiated is very much in line with the environmental focus of Ultrabulk and the shipping industry at large.

“We have made considerable improvements to NOx and SOx emissions; the latter being the focus as in 2019 the SOx emission has to be reduced by 85 per cent. As an industry we are under way to deliver on these limits, but we shall naturally not stop there.

“CO2 still needs to be reduced. As well as the Shipping Industry’s commitment through International Maritime Organisation targets, Ultrabulk is committed to achieving significant additional reductions. The Smart Green Shipping Alliance is an exciting step in that direction.”

Dr Jenifer Baxter, Head of Engineering, IMechE said:

“This is an exciting project that addresses one of the more difficult decarbonisation challenges and represents the ingenuity of engineering that the Institution of Mechanical Engineers seeks to support.

“Shipping has been a part of our global transportation system for hundreds of years moving through wind and man-power to coal and diesel power. This project presents a new phase taking us full circle forward again to wind power, leading the way with state-of-the-art power and engine technologies enabling shipping to remain relevant and commercially viable in an increasingly low-carbon world.”

ENDS

For more information contact:

SGSA: Diane Gilpin, 07768 312176, [email protected]

Drax: Jessica Gorton, 07712677177, [email protected]

HYD: Rob Humphreys, 01590 679344, [email protected]

Notes to Editors

The International Maritime Organisation, the London-based specialist UN agency responsible for the safety of shipping and its environmental impact, in April this year reached a landmark greenhouse gas agreement, which set two key goals: Greenhouse gas emissions from shipping to decline by at least 50% by 2050, compared to 2008 levels, and as an interim goal carbon intensity of shipping to decline by 40% by 2030. The International Chamber of Shipping has said the future of the sector lies beyond fossil fuels, and that the IMO agreement sends a strong signal for the development of low and zero carbon propulsion technologies in the shipping sector.

Smart Green Shipping Alliance

  • Established in 2014 with the purpose of commercialising renewable energy for the global shipping sector
  • SGSA accelerates commercially viable solutions through transferring technology and knowledge from offshore yacht racing, F1, renewable energy, aviation and defence to complement deep commercial maritime expertise. It includes the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE), Humphreys Yacht Design, Lloyds Register, Group Partners, University of Southampton, University College London, Tyndall Centre for Climate Change, Willis Towers Watson, Cammell Laird and Capital Law.
  • Founder/CEO sits on the newly created Clean Maritime Council
  • Advisory Board: Dr Jenifer Baxter, IMechE; Baroness Bryony Worthington, Environmental Defense Fund, and architect of UK climate policy; Professor Jingjing Xu, maritime commerce Plymouth University; Peter Hinchliffe CBE, former Secretary General, International Chamber of Shipping.

Humphreys Yacht Design

  • Rob & Tom Humphreys head up a team of highly talented and experienced naval architects and yacht designers in a studio that boasts one of the most diverse design portfolios.
  • Successful projects include multiple award winning Superyachts (such as the 37m MY Ermis² and the 38m Ketch Cyrano de Bergerac), America’s Cup, Vendee Globe, Global Challenge and Whitbread / Volvo Ocean Race yachts.
  • The Studio also has well over 3000 production yachts to its name.

For more information visit: www.humphreysdesign.com

Drax Group

  • Drax operates the largest power station in the UK, based at Selby in North Yorkshire. Since converting four of its six generating units to use biomass instead of coal, it has become the biggest renewable power generator in the country, producing enough renewable electricity for four million households.
  • As well as the engineering skill and expertise needed to convert the power station from coal to biomass, the team at Drax also had to create an entirely new global supply chain to provide the quantity of biomass required to fuel its boilers – the majority of which comes from North America and Europe.
  • Its biomass generating units deliver carbon savings of more than 80% compared to when they used coal – this includes supply chain emissions.
  • It is committed to reducing its emissions further and helping other businesses to decarbonise through its B2B electricity supply businesses, Haven Power and Opus Energy, which provide 100% renewable power to more than 350,000 business sites.
  • Drax is starting an innovative Bioenergy Carbon Capture and Storage pilot later this year which could help the power station deliver negative emissions, meaning the power it produces will help reduce the amount of carbon dioxide accumulating in the atmosphere – vital for global efforts to tackle climate change.

Ultrabulk

  • Ultrabulk Shipping is a dry bulk cargo shipping business.
  • The company’s vessels transport cargos including scrap, bio fuels, iron ore, grains, minerals, and sugar.
  • Ultrabulk operate a fleet of Handysize, Supramax, and Panamax vessels.
  • The company was founded in 1891 and is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark.

IMechE

  • Founded in 1847 in Birmingham, with the original statement of purpose: “To give an impulse to invention likely to be useful to the world”
  • 120,000 members globally

For more information visit www.imeche.org

InnovateUK

Innovate UK drives productivity and economic growth by supporting businesses to develop and realise the potential of new ideas.

We connect businesses to the partners, customers and investors that can help them turn ideas into commercially successful products and services and business growth.

We fund business and research collaborations to accelerate innovation and drive business investment into R&D. Our support is available to businesses across all economic sectors, value chains and UK regions.

Innovate UK is part of UK Research and Innovation.

For more information visit www.innovateuk.ukri.org