Drax has worked with its partners Associated British Ports, DAN Shipping and Davis Wagon Services to jointly donate £3,500 to the Mission to Seafarers, a charity which supports people working at sea.
Drax volunteers Emma Smith, Colin Bansor and Taslima Ayre on board one of the ships
Volunteers from the charity, as well as from Drax and DAN shipping, packed bags with the donated items and supplies and then distributed to crews on the ships at Immingham port, including those carrying fuel for Drax’s supply chain.
Mark Gibbens, Drax Head of Logistics, said: “We are proud to support the important work that the Mission to Seafarers does to bring support and comfort to the key workers in our supply chain and others during Christmas. I’d also like to thank our partners at ABP, DAN shipping and Davis Wagon Services for their contributions.
“This is a way to thank the people employed throughout our supply chain whose invaluable work helps us to maintain reliable, renewable electricity supplies for millions of homes and businesses. I hope these donations will help the men and women working out at sea enjoy a more festive Christmas even whilst away from loved ones.”
Revd. Tim Linkens, Mission to Seafarers chaplain, said: “As we approach Christmas, seafarers are still out on their ships keeping global trade moving. When you see the news reports of the supply chain challenges that may cause issues getting the presents you want, you will rarely be told about the seafarers themselves. The Mission to Seafarers supports those who are away from home, missing their families and loved ones and it’s thanks to donations and volunteering efforts such as these that we are able to continue this vital work.”
Steve Pullen, Managing Director at DAN Shipping, said: “When Drax approached us with this volunteering opportunity, we were more than happy to contribute and support what is a truly worthwhile initiative. It was great to see the amount of donations and all the volunteers come together at the port to wrap the presents and then to meet some of the key workers. I hope this gesture shows them how much we appreciate the important work they do.”
Drax is committed to supporting the communities local to its operations through various initiatives including fundraising for local charities and supporting education and skills.
ENDS
Photo caption: Volunteers from Drax and DAN Shipping helped Mission to Seafarers pack the supplies to be distributed
Media contacts:
Megan Hopgood
Communications Officer
E: [email protected]
T: 07936 350 175
Notes to editors:
- Drax’s Charity Committee has a dedicated fund for supporting good causes local to its operations, which include Drax Power Station near Selby and its hydro power plants in Scotland.
- Charities and community organisations local to Drax’s operations which support STEM and education outreach, skills and employability, or which work to improve local communities, can apply for small grants from Drax.
- To request an application form, email [email protected] or fill out an enquiry form on the Drax website.
About Mission to Seafarers
There are 1.5 million seafarers across the world who are responsible for transporting over 90% of the world’s goods and fuels, making them essential key workers who often go unrecognised by the general population.
People working on ships can often spend months at a time far away from their loved ones, with limited internet access which can lead to loneliness and mental health issues.
To compensate for the lack of facilities available, the Mission to Seafarers Centres, spread across 50 countries, aim to provide Seafarers with:
- Access to WiFi Internet and SIM cards
- A comfortable place to rest and relax
- The chance to get food and toiletries
- Transport to shops and local amenities
- Emotional and spiritual support
About Drax
Drax Group’s purpose is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future and in 2019 announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030, using bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) technology.
Drax’s around 3,000 employees operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production and supply to third parties. For more information visit www.drax.com
Power generation:
Drax owns and operates a portfolio of renewable electricity generation assets in England and Scotland. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies five percent of the country’s electricity needs.
Having converted Drax Power Station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal it has become the UK’s biggest renewable power generator and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe. It is also where Drax is piloting the groundbreaking negative emissions technology BECCS within its CCUS (Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage) Incubation Area.
Its pumped storage, hydro and energy from waste assets in Scotland include Cruachan Power Station – a flexible pumped storage facility within the hollowed-out mountain Ben Cruachan.
The Group also aims to build on its BECCS innovation at Drax Power Station with a target to deliver 4 million tonnes of negative CO2 emissions each year from new-build BECCS outside of the UK by 2030 and is currently developing models for North American and European markets.
Pellet production and supply:
The Group has 18 operational pellet plants and developments with nameplate production capacity of around 5 million tonnes a year.
Drax is targeting 8 million tonnes of production capacity by 2030, which will require the development of over 3 million tonnes of new biomass pellet production capacity. The pellets are produced using materials sourced from sustainably managed working forests and are supplied to third party customers in Europe and Asia for the generation of renewable power.
Drax’s pellet plants supply biomass used at its own power station in North Yorkshire, England to generate flexible, renewable power for the UK’s homes and businesses, and also to customers in Europe and Asia.
Customers:
Drax supplies renewable electricity to UK businesses, offering a range of energy-related services including energy optimisation, as well as electric vehicle strategy and management.
To find out more go to the website www.energy.drax.com
