Tag: BECCS

How biomass delivers system stability in an uncertain energy landscape

14 May 2026

Opinion

This article first appeared in Bioenergy Insight.

The energy landscape has fundamentally shifted over the past five years. What began as a singular focus on decarbonisation has evolved into a more complex challenge balancing climate goals with energy security, reliability and the explosive growth in power demand from artificial intelligence and data centres. For Ross McKenzie, chief sustainability officer at Drax Group, this transformation has reinforced a central thesis: that sustainable energy systems require more than just weather-dependent renewables to succeed.

‘A resilient energy mix is one that can absorb shocks without compromising reliability, affordability or sustainability,’ McKenzie explains. ‘In practice, that means balancing three complementary technology groups rather than betting everything on a single approach.’

Those three pillars, according to McKenzie, are weatherdependent renewables like wind and solar; flexible, dispatchable generation including sustainable biomass; and energy storage across multiple technologies from batteries to pumped hydro.

It’s a framework that positions biomass as a strategic asset for grid stability, rather than just a carbon-neutral fuel source. This perspective is gaining traction as power systems grapple with the reliability challenges of high renewable penetration.

The flexibility imperative

Wind and solar now comprise 35-40% of UK electricity generation and around 17% in the US, with further growth expected. However, their weather-dependent nature creates what McKenzie describes as ‘structural challenges’ during extended low-wind, low-solar periods.

‘Biomass is often assessed through the lens of carbon, land-use and deforestation, and that is an important part of the picture,’ he says. ‘But its system value is also significant. As a firm, flexible renewable source it can generate when wind and solar cannot.’

This dispatchability distinguishes biomass from other renewable sources in crucial ways. Unlike wind turbines that idle when the wind drops or solar panels that produce nothing after sunset, biomass plants can ramp up or down on demand, operating across both baseload and peak requirements to maintain grid balance.

‘As grids incorporate more intermittent renewables, extended low-wind and low-solar periods become a structural challenge,’ McKenzie notes. ‘Sustainable biomass can operate across baseload and peak demand to help keep the system balanced and secure, without adding fossil carbon to the atmosphere.’

This capability becomes increasingly valuable as renewable penetration grows. The more wind and solar capacity connects to the grid, the more critical becomes the need for flexible backup generation that can respond quickly when conditions change.

Geopolitics reshapes the conversation

‘Recent geopolitical disruption and supply chain volatility have reinforced the importance of energy security and affordability alongside decarbonisation,’ McKenzie continues. ‘That has sharpened the focus on the risks of overdependence on any single fuel source, and on the value of resilient, diversified systems.’

The result is a more nuanced policy conversation that recognises biomass not only for its decarbonisation potential but as what McKenzie calls ‘a strategic asset that can provide firm capacity and support system stability.’

In the UK and Europe, this translates into clearer emphasis on diversified low-carbon generation combining both intermittent and dispatchable sources. In the US, biomass discussions increasingly focus on strengthening domestic supply chains and supporting allies through energy exports.

‘Overall, policymakers are prioritising systems that can absorb shocks and maintain stability and predictable costs,’ McKenzie says. ‘Which elevates the role of technologies that deliver both flexibility and security.’

For Drax specifically, this shift validates its North American biomass supply chain strategy. ‘That diversification supports more stable fuel costs for Drax Power Station in the UK than a system reliant on more volatile international gas markets, while continuing to support sustainability objectives,’ McKenzie explains.

The AI factor

The emergence of AI and data centres as major electricity consumers adds another dimension to energy planning. Hyperscale companies increasingly seek 24/7 clean power solutions to meet ambitious sustainability commitments whilst ensuring uninterrupted operations.

‘Many major tech companies have set ambitious clean energy targets and are increasingly looking for firm, dispatchable generation to complement wind and solar.’

This demand profile strengthens the case for balanced generation portfolios that combine weatherdependent renewables with flexible sources and storage. Unlike traditional industrial consumers that might adjust operations based on electricity availability, data centres require constant power supply regardless of weather conditions.

‘That strengthens the case for a balanced portfolio combining renewables with flexible generation and storage to deliver reliable power when the country needs it,’ McKenzie notes.

System thinking

Drax’s approach reflects what McKenzie describes as ‘system thinking’ — viewing different technologies as complementary rather than competing assets. The company operates biomass, hydro, pumped hydro storage and is investing in battery storage, seeing each technology as contributing different capabilities to overall system stability.

‘Each contributes at different timescales providing firm capacity, flexibility and fast response, so the overall portfolio can balance variability, respond to demand in real time and support grid stability as intermittent renewable generation increases.’

This portfolio approach addresses what McKenzie characterises as the energy trilemma: delivering reliability, affordability and decarbonisation simultaneously rather than trading one objective against another.

‘In practice, energy systems must deliver reliability, affordability and decarbonisation together,’ he says. ‘A resilient approach is to build a diversified portfolio of assets so the system can manage variability and remain secure, even during periods of geopolitical disruption or supply chain volatility.’

The BECCS dimension

Looking forward, McKenzie sees Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) as potentially transformative for biomass’s role in energy systems. BECCS combines renewable electricity generation with permanent carbon removal — a dual function that could position biomass at the centre of net-zero strategies.

‘As net zero pathways become more defined, it is increasingly clear that carbon removals, including BECCS and other biogenic solutions, can play an important role for addressing residual emissions from hard-toabate sectors,’ he says.

The UK appears wellpositioned to develop BECCS at scale, given existing biomass infrastructure and access to carbon dioxide storage capacity in the North Sea. However, McKenzie emphasises that realising this potential requires coordinated infrastructure development.

‘The UK has many of the right ingredients to progress BECCS,’ he says. ‘Realising that potential at scale will depend on turning ambition into delivery, through CO2 transport and storage networks, investable market frameworks and long-term policy support.’

If those enabling conditions come together, McKenzie sees BECCS moving ‘from a promising option to a core part of the UK’s infrastructure toolkit — supporting energy security while delivering durable carbon removals.’

Balancing act

Ultimately, McKenzie’s vision for biomass reflects broader changes in how energy systems are conceived and managed. The focus has shifted from individual technologies competing for market share to integrated systems delivering multiple objectives simultaneously.

‘The objective is not a trade-off, but a balanced system that delivers immediate security of supply while staying aligned with a credible long-term pathway to net-zero,’ he concludes.

The impact of BECCS Done Well on Drax

14 May 2025

Opinion

BECCS Done Well findings

In late 2022 a report authored by Jonathon Porritt and his High Level Panel, concerning how bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) can be implemented in ways that have a positive impact on climate, nature and people, was published. The report, entitled , ‘BECCS Done Well’, outlines 30 conditions required for BECCS to deliver positive outcomes. We published a first response to the report in July 2023, and subsequently a more detailed and final response in April 2024. During the 18 months between report publication and our final response, BECCS Done Well and its 30 conditions not only stirred many invaluable discussions within and amongst teams, it also inspired mindsets and has been embedded in decision-making processes.

Here are some of the commitments we’ve made and how we’re meeting those

We committed to compiling an Evidence Hub sharing scientific evidence underpinning BECCS scale up, to be consistently updated with the latest scientific findings. In the last month we’ve published our new Evidence Hub on the Drax website, including four papers, and with more to come.

Climate Positive

  • Only sourcing from catchments where our activity, alongside others in the area, collectively has a neutral or positive effect on carbon stocks at a timescale appropriate to the ecosystem and its current condition.
    • We’re actively developing a forest carbon appraisal methodology and will have this completed by end of year as we committed in the Sustainability Framework.
  • Avoiding Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR).
    • We remain committed to not capturing carbon for EOR by screening out EOR only projects in our new-build BECCS selection process and ensuring that this commitment is reflected in the selected BECCS carbon crediting methodology. We’ve also commissioned a study on the use of mass balance for shared transportation infrastructure. Where our CO2 will be transported in shared infrastructure (e.g. pipelines serving multiple emitters, geological stores and EOR projects) a mass balance accounting approach ensures that for every ton of CO2 we put into the system a ton goes to permanent geological storage.

People Positive

  • Developing Community Advisory Panels in some areas local to our North American operations.
    • Community Advisory Panels, starting in Gloster, USA, have been launched by the Community team, with more locations to come. A new First Nations Advisory Council is now also up and running in Canada, and we’ve developed an Indigenous Peoples Policy to codify best practice in our activities.
  • Seeking to establish resolution (grievance) mechanisms for our operational sites.
    • A new grievance mechanism is under development by the Community team.

Nature Positive

  • Identifying baselines for biodiversity and ecosystem functioning for the land we own, manage and/or buy from, and use this information to support biodiversity across our sites and in our value chain.
    • We’ve been working with NatureServe, a leading authority on biodiversity, to establish a biodiversity baseline for our sourcing areas in the US South East.
  • Establishing processes for studying and mitigating impact on nature.
    • We’ve progressed our review of nature related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities aligned to the Taskforce for Nature Related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) at our operations.
    • We’ve published our first Nature Positive Action Plan for Drax Power Station internally, with corresponding plans for other locations coming soon.

The above examples are only a handful of the actions we’re taking to follow through on these commitments we made with a lot of work being done behind the scenes.

What we’ve learned

The response process to the BECCS Done Well report enabled sustainability focused discussions across the business, and brought multiple functions together to discuss how we can achieve positive outcomes through our operations. Our internal and external conversations set us up well to discuss and develop the Sustainability Framework targets, helping us advance towards an action plan keeping us accountable.

We’ve codified the BECCS Done Well commitments, and more, through the new Sustainability Framework and the updated Biomass Sourcing Policy. As we move forward, we’ll continue to work together to make positive action and hold ourselves accountable to our commitments.

Wind droughts show the need for low-carbon flexible generation

5 February 2025

Opinion

By Dr Iain Staffell, Imperial College London 

As our energy mix changes and a different weather challenge has been taking up the headlines, latest analysis from Electric Insights has revealed that the need for reliable low-carbon generation when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine is becoming more important. Dr Iain Staffell took a look at the data.   

“Dunkelflaute” must surely be an early contender for the 2025 Oxford Dictionary word of the year.  A German word meaning “dark doldrums”, it is used in the energy world to describe a dark, cold, calm spell of weather during which very little energy can be generated with wind or solar power.

In December and January, Britain has faced two spells of so-called Dunkelflaute.  The first, hitting around the 12 December, saw wind – the largest source of energy in the UK last year overall – drop to 6% of total supply.  In response, gas power stations ramped up to their highest output ever recorded, supplying more than 73% of Britain’s electricity and sending power prices soaring.  Wind output dropped suddenly again in the New Year causing prices to hit £2,900/MWh (40 times their average) on 8 January.

This winter has again demonstrated some of the challenges we must address in reaching a clean power system by 2030.  The combination of a long cold snap and low wind speeds left Britain’s power system relying heavily on natural gas and imports, drawing down the nation’s gas storage to ‘concerningly low’ levels, and coming close to generation falling short of peak demand.  Options for low-carbon flexibility are urgently needed – both investing in new technologies and maintaining existing sources – as electricity supply and demand become more dependent on the weather.

Daily average electricity mix in Britain during mid-December, highlighting the Dunkelflaute period, and the difference between output from dispatchable technologies which we control, and those that are driven by the weather or foreign power markets.

Gas was not the only technology to help during the shortfall.  Biomass and hydro plants increased their output by 40% and 60% on the peak day (12 December) compared to the weekends before and after.  While this helped meet the shortfall of wind, the impact was muted as Britain has relatively little capacity of either technology.  In previous years, coal power stations would have also helped to meet demand, but the last one closed in September.  Pumped hydro and batteries helped meet the evening peak on the 12th, but these only supply power for a few hours, and so cannot help with multi-day shortages.

Interconnection with neighbouring countries also provides flexibility, but on the 12th when we most needed them, imports from abroad fell by half relative to the surrounding days.  Britain’s neighbours were suffering from the same wind drought, as weather systems are often the size of continents.  More power could have flowed into Britain, but only if our prices rose high enough.  This exposes a key problem with relying on interconnection to solve capacity shortages, which leaves countries competing for limited supply of power at the same time.

Altogether, this leaves gas as the only large-scale source of flexibility in the country.  This is a risky proposition on three fronts: affordability, energy security, and our climate goals.

The cost of our gas dependence: We are still reeling from the gas price crisis.  Gas is very much the ‘crutch’ of the grid, and British electricity is more strongly swayed by gas prices than in any other European country, as we have so few alternatives for flexible generation (no coal, limited hydro and biomass, and less storage than neighbouring countries).  Gas sets the electricity price in 98% of hours, despite meeting only a third of electricity demand. That means Britain’s electricity prices track almost perfectly with gas prices, leaving consumers particularly vulnerable to price shocks, as seen during the recent gas price crisis.

The change in electricity and natural gas prices on Britain’s wholesale markets over the last decade, indexed to the 2010–19 average.  Gas prices increased by over 50% between February and December last year, dragging electricity prices up with them.

Energy security at risk: Relying so heavily on a single technology in times of system stress is leaving all our eggs in one basket.  Capacity was tight on 12 December and 8 January, causing NESO to issue rare Capacity Market Notices, a ‘blackout prevention system’ used to encourage generators to prepare extra capacity just in case.   Britain’s last coal plant has retired, all bar one nuclear plant is coming towards their end of life, and it is unclear if biomass will continue operating beyond 2027.  This all comes just as peak electricity demand is expected to grow from electric vehicles, heat pumps, AI, and data centres.  Unless more capacity is built or existing capacity has its lifetime extended, Capacity Market Notices will be increasingly likely in future.

The carbon challenge: Gas is the most polluting fuel remaining on the grid.  In just five years, government aim to run a clean power system, meaning just 5% of electricity produced from fossil fuels, down from over 25% today.  These plans include retaining almost all the current gas capacity to cover rare but intense periods of low renewable output.  Put together, this means gas plants will see fewer operating hours in the future, just as coal plants did over the last decade.  Either they will need to charge more for their output to cover costs, or the system needs to move more towards paying for availability than for output (e.g. capacity payments).

Phasing out gas will largely be achieved by scaling up wind and solar power, but that further intensifies the challenges posed by weather variability.  Both the CCC and NESO recognise that a balanced approach is needed, using all the tools at our disposal – flexible low-carbon generation, long-duration energy storage, interconnectors and a continued (but increasingly limited) role for gas.  Looking ahead, policy frameworks envisage the arrival of more low-carbon dispatchable power from 2030 onward.  This includes power stations equipped with carbon capture and storage (CCS), hydrogen, and long-duration storage.  All of these play little or no role in today’s power system, so the task now is to define a clear strategy for scaling and deploying these resources at pace, while avoiding cost escalation to consumers due to all the new investments.  By planning for Britain’s future energy needs and taking strategic action now, government, industry and investors can break free from paying for volatile gas expensive imports, and seize the opportunity of clean, stable, and lower cost electricity.

Read the full article here or in the Q4 2024 Electric Insights report, coming soon.

This article was written by Dr Iain Staffell, Senior Lecturer at Imperial College London, as part of the Electric Insights project. Drax does not guarantee the accuracy, reliability or completeness of this content.

Newsweek Pillars of the Green Transition interview with Drax CEO, Will Gardiner

18 November 2024

Opinion

This interview appeared first in Newsweek Investment Reports.

Given the recent energy challenges in Europe, especially since the war in Ukraine, how do you view Drax’s transition from fossil fuels to biomass? Do you believe this model is scalable and reliable enough to meet Europe’s long-term energy demands amidst geopolitical instability?

The war in Ukraine has demonstrated how critical biomass can be as an alternative energy source and its role in the energy transition. While solar and wind are often seen as the core renewable energy technologies, they aren’t always reliable, especially when there’s no wind or sun. Biomass serves as an essential solution that offers the same stability and reliability as coal but without the associated CO2 emissions. It provides critical ancillary services to the grid, like inertia and reactive power, similar to large-scale thermal plants, making it a valuable asset in ensuring energy supply.

However, it’s important to recognize that biomass should not be the primary energy source. Its usage must be sustainable, meaning there have to be clear rules on sourcing feedstock. At Drax, our transition from coal to biomass has been guided by strict sustainability requirements, ensuring that the biomass we use is renewable and responsibly sourced.

Can you briefly explain what biomass is and how it fits into Drax’s operations?

Biomass involves using sustainable wood pellets instead of fossil fuels to generate power. Drax, originally the largest coal-fired power station in Western Europe, underwent a significant transformation over the past two decades to switch from coal to biomass. Today, instead of burning coal, we use around 7 to 8 million tons of wood pellets annually, primarily sourced from the southeastern U.S. and western Canada.

The transition involved building a new supply chain tailored to biomass, which includes customized storage, logistics, and transport processes. Once the biomass reaches our power station, it’s used in the boilers to generate electricity in a way that’s similar to coal-fired generation, but with a much lower carbon footprint.

Drax has set a goal to be carbon negative by 2030. How do you plan to achieve this, and what role will carbon capture and storage play in the process?

Biomass is already a low-carbon power generation method, but by incorporating carbon capture and storage (CCS), we can take it a step further. Our plan is to install carbon capture units at our UK power station starting in 2027, with the goal of being fully operational by 2030. This technology will capture the CO2 emissions that come out of the power station and store them under the North Sea, effectively making our operations carbon negative.

Once fully operational, this process will remove 4 million tons of CO2 annually from the atmosphere. To put this into perspective, capturing 8 million tons of CO2 is equivalent to installing heat pumps in every home in Birmingham, the UK’s second-largest city.

How do you ensure that the biomass you source is sustainable and doesn’t contribute to deforestation?

The sustainability of biomass hinges on it being a renewable resource. This means that the CO2 absorbed by trees as they grow is released when we burn the pellets but is reabsorbed by new trees, maintaining a balanced cycle within the biosphere. Unlike fossil fuels, which release CO2 that’s been locked in rocks for millions of years, biomass doesn’t add new carbon to the atmosphere.

To ensure sustainability, all our biomass is sourced from forests that are actively regenerating, with no contribution to deforestation. In fact, the forests we source from are required to have increasing or stable carbon stocks. In the southeastern U.S., where most of our pellets come from, carbon stocks have been steadily growing since the 1950s. Additionally, strict limits are in place for CO2 emissions throughout the supply chain, from pellet production to transport, ensuring that biomass remains a low-carbon process.

Our sourcing practices are also rigorously documented and regulated, ensuring compliance with UK government standards. Importantly, the majority of our feedstock comes from byproducts such as sawdust and shavings from sawmills, contributing to a more well-managed forest ecosystem.

How do you integrate biomass with other renewable energy sources to create a reliable energy mix?

The UK’s energy system relies on a mix of different fuels, including wind, solar, gas, biomass, and hydro. Each source plays a different role in ensuring energy stability. For instance, on a sunny day with light wind, around a quarter of the UK’s power might come from solar, 13% from wind, 25% from gas, and 8% from biomass.

Biomass is unique because it’s a renewable, dispatchable energy source, meaning it can be turned up or down based on demand. This flexibility is crucial for maintaining a balanced energy system, especially when wind and solar aren’t generating power.

Drax’s strategy focuses on providing dispatchable renewable power to support the grid when other sources aren’t available, ensuring a reliable and stable energy supply.

As biomass continues to expand, particularly in North America, how do you plan to scale up operations, and what challenges do you anticipate for the industry?

The history of biomass power generation, especially over the last 25 years, has largely been about replacing coal, which is one of the most carbon-intensive fuel sources. As wind and solar become more affordable and widespread, the role of biomass will evolve. The next generation of biomass power stations will likely integrate carbon capture and storage, enabling biomass to act as a source of carbon removal.

For Drax, our plan is to build biomass power stations in the U.S. with integrated carbon capture and storage technology, which offers two key benefits: 24/7 green power and significant carbon removal. This combination is crucial for achieving net zero and meeting the growing demand for sustainable power, especially as technologies like AI drive increased energy consumption.

Why do you think biomass, despite being a significant part of the energy mix, isn’t as well-known as wind or solar energy?

Biomass tends to be more geographically specific. It’s an important part of the energy transition in countries like the UK, Germany, Denmark, and the Netherlands, where sustainable forestry is prevalent. In regions with fewer forests, like Southern Europe, it’s less common. Moreover, in places with consistent sunshine, like the Middle East, solar energy paired with batteries is often more viable. The visibility and relevance of biomass vary based on regional resources and energy needs.

How significant will carbon capture be in reducing emissions, and when do you think it will become a scalable solution?

Carbon capture is poised to play a crucial role in reducing emissions. The technology is proven and has been used by oil and gas companies for many years. The shift toward making carbon capture a viable business solution has gained momentum, particularly after COP26, with major players in the energy sector investing in this technology.

There are also growing incentives in countries like the U.S., Sweden, and Denmark, making carbon capture economically viable. By 2030, we expect to see the first significant projects, including ours in the UK and the U.S., with broader adoption occurring by the mid-2030s.

How do you educate the public about carbon capture and ensure they understand its importance in achieving net zero?

The need to achieve net zero is now widely accepted by the public and business leaders alike, especially as climate events like hurricanes, floods, and droughts continue to highlight the urgency of the situation. However, it’s crucial to convey that simply reducing emissions won’t be enough—we must also remove CO2 from the atmosphere to reach net zero.

We spend considerable time working with governments to ensure they understand this narrative, as government support is vital for driving the adoption of carbon capture technology. Once governments are on board, it becomes easier to communicate this message to the public, making carbon capture a more integral part of the green energy transition.

The UK must not squander its energy legacy

Will Gardiner, Chief Executive Officer, Drax Group

24 October 2024

Opinion
Biomass storage domes and water cooling towers at Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire

This article appeared in the Yorkshire Post on  24 October 2024

Many of the original climate change heroes live and work here in Yorkshire and it is these men and women who have worked so hard to keep the lights on whilst also ensuring that Britain became the first major economy to halve its emissions.

However, whilst this may sound like an encouraging accolade, the new Government has inherited a challenging situation where Britain is now lagging behind on delivering its targets for generating renewable energy and stopping climate change.

The UK’s carbon budgets are a legacy that the Conservative Party should be proud of and the legally binding targets that the last Government committed to form the basis of a set of world leading pathways that, if delivered, will make a meaningful contribution to slowing decarbonisation and ultimately improve everyone’s quality of life.

Critically, they also underpin long-term energy forecasts which demonstrate that global electricity usage is expected to more than double by 2050.

Both Government and industry will have to work closely together to ensure that billions of pounds of investment is made into the UK in order to enable the delivery of the renewable energy infrastructure required to power this increase in demand.

This is most true here in Yorkshire and the Humber, where due to the legacy of our fossil fuel industries, we have the biggest decarbonisation opportunity of any region.

The decisions businesses are making drive economic growth, support thousands of high-quality jobs and signal that the nation is also open to foreign investment.

In Government, the Conservative Party understood the value of this long-term perspective but in opposition they currently seem more focused on short term political calculations that put them in danger of spoiling their legacy.

Last week the former Energy Secretary, Claire Coutinho, set alight the Conservative Party’s proud record of introducing carbon budgets and rowed back on her work to put the policies in place to meet them when she was Secretary of State.

She singled out Yorkshire’s Drax Power Station as being surplus to the country’s requirements, despite it powering 4 million homes and providing 4% of the country’s total power and 8% of its renewable electricity. Crucially, she neglected to say what could replace this significant amount of renewable and reliable generation capacity.

Everyone who works at Drax Power Station is proud of our 50-year history, the role we play today in delivering dispatchable, renewable power to the country when it needs it, not just when the wind is blowing and the sun is shining, and the ongoing contribution it can make to tackling climate change.

The transformation of the site from the country’s largest coal-fired power station into the single biggest source of renewable power, saw its carbon emissions slashed by 99% and in turn made a significant contribution to the UK meeting its current climate targets.

And now we want to go even further, by installing the game changing carbon removals technology, bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) at the site.

BECCS at Drax will make it significantly easier for the country to meet its short and long-term climate targets, deliver the new Government’s 2030 clean electricity grid and, critically, our binding carbon budgets.

As the National Energy System Operator and Government work at pace to set out and implement their plans for the sector, we are ready to engage positively to play our part in a solution that delivers the essential objectives of security of supply, grid stability and decarbonisation.

The UK needs a consistent and assured energy strategy that keeps the lights on, delivers the decarbonisation agenda that society needs and wants, and stimulates economic growth and prosperity.

A statement from Will Gardiner, CEO of Drax Group

Will Gardiner, Chief Executive Officer, Drax Group

18 October 2024

Opinion

“The Conservative Party’s decision is reckless and irresponsible. It is deeply disappointing that they now care more about political point scoring than the country’s ongoing energy security and ability to meet net zero.

“In Government, the party acknowledged the key role Drax Power Station, the country’s largest source of renewable power, plays in keeping the lights on for millions of homes and businesses when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine.

“As Secretary of State for DESNZ, Claire Coutinho’s name is on the planning approval for Drax’s plans for BECCS at the Selby site. The decision letter clearly stated that the project will support the transition to net zero by 2050.

“Her comments will upset Drax Power Station colleagues who work tirelessly to power the UK. It will also lead to concerns across our country-wide supply chain and among other UK based biomass generators.

“Our priority is working in partnership with the Government who is focused on safeguarding the UK’s energy security and delivering net zero.”

 

BECCS at Drax can accelerate the UK’s decarbonisation by delivering carbon removals

21 June 2024

Opinion

By Richard Gwilliam, UK BECCS Programme Director

Decarbonising our economy is critical to fighting climate change and meeting net zero by 2050.

In the UK, we have made strong progress in creating a greener electricity grid. We have gone further and faster than any other G7 country to transition to lower carbon power generation. That is a record we can be extremely proud of.

At Drax, we have played a key role in this journey by converting Drax Power Station from being the largest coal-fired electricity generator in the UK to the country’s biggest single source of renewable power.

By using sustainable biomass to generate electricity the carbon emissions of the North Yorkshire site have dropped by 99%. Drax Power Station is now in its 50th year of operation and contributes to UK energy security.

Our four generating units can provide up to 2.6GW of dispatchable, secure, renewable power to the country’s grid, at the times the country needs it most, such as when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine.

But we are not stopping here.

We plan to help accelerate the decarbonisation of the UK’s electricity system by adding the carbon removals technology, bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), to Drax Power Station. BECCS is the only technology which can generate renewable power while removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

The International Energy Agency, the UK’s Committee on Climate Change and National Grid ESO all say that BECCS will have to play an important role in delivering net zero and ensuring the UK can reach its legally binding fifth and sixth carbon budgets. ​

Adding BECCS to the power station would also ensure that we can support the major political parties’ plans for grid decarbonisation and for delivering largescale engineered carbon removals.

The two BECCS units we want to deliver could remove 8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere per year. In carbon terms that is equivalent to taking 3 million cars off the UK’s roads or stopping all departing flights from Heathrow.

Analysis from economic consultancy Baringa has shown that with BECCS at Drax Power Station it will cost £15bn less to reach net zero by 2050 compared to other more complex measures to meet the target.

However, to deliver the project we will need to secure the right support from the next Government, including a bridging mechanism from the end of current renewable schemes in 2027 to BECCS operations starting in 2030.

With this in place we could invest billions in delivering BECCS, creating up to 10,000 jobs during construction. We also intend to source 80% of the materials for the project from British suppliers helping support economic growth across Yorkshire and the Humber and nationally.

Delivering BECCS at Drax Power Station will be a further milestone in the UK’s decarbonisation providing long-term energy security, carbon removals and economic development in the heart of Yorkshire and the Humber.

Learn more about BECCS at Drax here.

For 50 years Drax Power Station has been generating power and high quality jobs

13 June 2024

Opinion
aerial view of Drax Power Station

By Bruce Heppenstall, Plant Director, Drax Power Station

Drax Power Station has kept Britain’s lights on for 50 years. As well as playing a key role in the country’s energy security, providing enough power for 4 million homes, we have been a long-term source of high-quality well-paid jobs, too.

The site I manage in Selby is one of the largest employers locally and combined with our regional supply chains we contribute £358m per year to the economy of Yorkshire and the Humber. There won’t be a single constituency within the region where we don’t have some form of economic impact.

As the Plant Director, I am proud of this role that we play in supporting regional prosperity. We employ around 1,000 people directly at Drax Power Station and through maintenance, logistics and other activities hundreds of contractor colleagues can also be on site during any one week – increasing over a thousand during a planned outage.

However, our impact doesn’t end at the borders of Yorkshire and the Humber either. We are one of the largest users of rail freight in the UK and our biomass wagons take pellets from the Ports of Tyne, Liverpool, Hull and Immingham. This element of our supply chain also supports 2,500 jobs across the country.

Analysis from Oxford Economics shows that in 2021 the economic activity created by Drax Power Station contributed £735m to the UK economy and supported 7,130 jobs.

For some time, we have also been investing heavily in the workforce of the future. Since 2003, we have trained over 150 apprentices at the power station. We work in partnership with Selby College and the University of Sheffield to give the next generation the skills they need for long-term, rewarding careers in renewable power and delivering net zero.

We know it is important to get young people engaged in green skills early and that is why, through the Drax Foundation, we work closely with local authorities, schools and social enterprises to support STEM education and training on energy efficiency. We’re also behind an initiative to install LED lightbulbs and solar panels in schools to manage their energy costs and get young people interested in our industry.

The future of Drax Power Station will involve us continuing to generate renewable power from biomass but also adding carbon capture and storage and creating the world’s largest BECCS facility. We are planning to invest billions in this critically important carbon removal technology and up to 10,000 jobs could be created and supported during construction.

BECCS is vital because it provides reliable, renewable power to support energy security, while removing millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and making a significant contribution towards addressing the climate crisis – no other technology does both.

Drax Power Station has played an important role both regionally and nationally through our contribution to energy security, jobs and economic growth for the last 50 years. And with the successful delivery of our BECCS project, I very much hope that we will continue to do so for the next 50.

But to get there we need to secure the right policy support for BECCS from the next government. That includes rapidly launching the Track-1 expansion and Track-2 project selection processes for CCS and making urgent progress on the development of a business model for greenhouse gas removal technology. With these in place we can get BECCS operational by 2030, removing millions tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere per year while ensuring that local people can build their careers in skilled jobs at the heart of the green transition, for decades to come in Selby.

Learn more about Drax’s plans for BECCS here.

Drax’s plans can help the next Government deliver UK energy security

Will Gardiner, Chief Executive Officer, Drax Group

7 June 2024

Opinion

The UK has decarbonised its energy system at a quicker rate than any other country, but having done ‘the easy bit’ and with demand for electricity forecast to increase by 50% by 2035, we are now at an inflection point.

Additionally, leading thinktank Public First’s research shows that in 2028 the UK is on course to hit an energy security “crunch point” – with peak demand predicted to exceed secure dispatchable and baseload capacity by 7.5GW.

This is due to delays in bringing new generation on to the system, anticipated increased demand for power, and aging assets, including coal, nuclear and gas, coming off the electricity grid.

That means to deliver energy security, meet rising demand for power and to reach binding net zero targets, including the 5th and 6th carbon budgets, the next government needs to go further and faster.

This year marks half a century that Drax has been powering the UK and contributing to security of supply. Today, the flexible, dispatchable power that our assets in North Yorkshire and Scotland produce keep the lights on when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine.

Drax Power Station, the UK’s largest single-source of renewable electricity, powers 4 million homes. In Scotland, Cruachan Power Station and our other hydro power sites provide the grid flexibility, reduce the need for curtailment payments to wind farms and help meet the demand for energy.

In total our business delivers about 4% of the UK’s electricity and 8% of its renewable power.

Subject to getting the right policy support, we stand ready to invest billions to deliver carbon removals and renewable power using bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) at Drax and more than double the pumped hydro storage capacity at Cruachan.

Completing these projects will mean we can play a vital long-term role in providing secure power to the country and supporting the next government in meeting the goal of a decarbonised grid by 2030 or 2035. Without Drax’s assets delivering these targets will be extremely challenging.

Our plans for BECCS and the expansion at Cruachan will also reduce the country’s exposure to commercially volatile and imported fossil fuels, enhance our national security and create and support thousands of jobs during construction.

But to realise this potential, the next government must prioritise and speed up implementing the support required to unlock the investment for these major infrastructure projects.

To deliver the first pumped storage hydro power stations in the UK for decades, including the Cruachan expansion, we need to see a cap and floor mechanism implemented. This would provide an investment framework to reduce risks for investors while at the same time encouraging operators of the new storage facilities to respond to system needs.

And all large-scale biomass generators planning to transition to BECCS need the certainty of a bridging mechanism to maintain their flexible, dispatchable renewable power between the end of the current renewable support and BECCS operations starting.

The carbon removals BECCS can deliver are recognised by the world’s leading climate scientists, including the UN’s IPCC and the UK’s CCC, as crucial to almost all pathways to reach net zero and fighting climate change. The carbon credits produced through BECCS can be purchased by companies with emissions that are hard or impossible to abate providing a pathway for them to permanently remove carbon from the atmosphere.

Energy security, jobs and skills and net zero should go hand in hand and we want to work with the next Government to swiftly implement these policies. Doing so will give new ministers the best chance possible to maintain progress on decarbonising the UK’s energy system while ensuring there is sufficient, secure capacity to meet the country’s energy needs without relying on foreign fossil fuels.

Learn more about how Drax supports the UK energy system here.