Drax donates £25,000 to help local communities affected by floods

Drax has donated £25,000 to help families and businesses in the local area who have been impacted by flooding in recent days, the Group’s CEO has announced

View of Drax Power Station

Dozens of homes and businesses in Snaith and other nearby villages have been flooded after the River Aire burst its banks following severe rainfall in recent weeks.

The funds donated by Drax will be used to help flood victims recover from the events and ensure communities get the help that they need in the days and weeks ahead.

Drax CEO Will Gardiner said:

“The flooding experienced by communities across the region over the last week has been devastating. It’s important that those who have lost their home or business get the support that they need, and that’s why Drax is today donating £25,000 to help local flood recovery efforts. Our thoughts are with all of those affected by these events.”

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner

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

Drax Power Station is a major local employer in the area, employing around 900 people directly and supporting thousands of other jobs through its supply chains.

ENDS

Media contact

Aidan Kerr
Drax Group Media Manager
[email protected]
+44 (0)7849 090 368

Editor’s Notes

  • Drax has donated £25,000 to Snaith Priory who are helping coordinate support for this impacted by the floods.
  • Photo caption: Drax Power Station. View/download.
  • Will Gardiner visited Snaith on Saturday 29 February and met with its town clerk Vicky Whiteley (pictured, below).
Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner discussing flood response with Vicky Whiteley, Town Clerk, Snaith, on Saturday 29 February 2020

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner discussing flood response with Vicky Whiteley, Town Clerk, Snaith, on Saturday 29 February 2020. Click to view/download.

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner viewing flooding in East Yorkshire town of Snaith

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner viewing flooding in East Yorkshire town of Snaith. Click to view/download.

About Drax

Drax Group’s purpose is to enable a zero carbon, lower cost energy future and in 2019 announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030.

Its 2,900-strong employees operate across three principal areas of activity – electricity generation, electricity sales to business customers and compressed wood pellet production.

Power generation:

Drax owns and operates a portfolio of flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity generation assets across Britain. The assets include the UK’s largest power station, based at Selby, North Yorkshire, which supplies five percent of the country’s electricity needs.

Having converted two thirds of Drax Power Station to use sustainable biomass instead of coal it has become the UK’s biggest renewable power generator and the largest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Its pumped storage, hydro and energy from waste assets in Scotland include Cruachan Power Station – a flexible pumped storage facility within the hollowed-out mountain Ben Cruachan.  It also owns and operates four gas power stations in England.

Customers:  

Drax owns two B2B energy supply businesses:

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

Pellet production:

Drax owns and operates three pellet mills in the US South which manufacture compressed wood pellets (biomass) produced from sustainably managed working forests. These pellet mills supply around 20% of the biomass used by Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire to generate flexible, renewable power for the UK’s homes and businesses.

For more information visit www.drax.com/uk