Archives: Press Release

Drax supports businesses and NHS during COVID-19 crisis

2 April 2020

Press releases
Engineer at Drax Power Station
  • Drax Group which owns and operates the UK’s largest power station, has signed up for a new C-19 Business Pledge to help others during the crisis
  • 250 facemasks donated to Drax by Chinese power company are delivered to York Hospital as part of efforts to support frontline NHS workers

It has teamed up with former Cabinet Minister, Rt Hon Justine Greening, as a founding member of the C-19 Business Pledge, a  national scheme which encourages employers to join the coronavirus effort by pledging to help their employees, customers and communities to get through the crisis.

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner said:

“Our dedicated teams across England, Scotland and Wales are working around the clock to continue generating and supplying the electricity the UK needs at this critical time. Through the C-19 Business Pledge we can work with others to go further in supporting those in our communities who need our help more than ever right now.

Will Gardiner, CEO, Drax Group

“We want to do as much as we can to help and support our own employees, as well as our customers and the communities in which we operate during this crisis.”

Justine Greening said:

“With the future of many employers hanging in the balance and incredibly tough times unfolding in sectors across the UK, businesses face many incredibly difficult decisions. But those organisations who are able to, like Drax Group, can have a huge role in battling the impact of coronavirus and make a real difference in these uniquely challenging times.

Justine Greening with Drax Generation CEO, Andy Koss

“In spite of everything, lots of employers have already shown amazing initiative and commitment to helping people affected by coronavirus. The C-19 Business Pledge is all about encouraging as many businesses and universities as possible to get involved and then helping them do that faster and better by sharing all the great work that’s already been done. The early response has been incredible and I’ll do everything I can to help to connect up British business to play its role.”

Drax has also delivered 250 facemasks to York Hospital to help keep NHS staff on the frontlines safe.

The masks were donated to Drax Power Station by employees at the Shanghai Waigaoqiao No.3 Power Generation Company in China, part of Shenergy Power Technology. The Chinese energy company’s engineers visited Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire last year, to learn more about how it has transformed itself to become the largest decarbonisation project in Europe by using sustainable biomass instead of coal.

Drax Power Station is the UK’s largest, generating 5% of the country’s electricity.

Prof. Feng Weizhong, Shenergy General Manager, said:

“We have suffered from the virus in the past two months and know how terrible it is. Thankfully now we are in a much better situation, and we want to help our international friends so that all of us can overcome the virus as soon as possible. We shouldn’t and can’t manage this alone. Although we are from different countries and different cultures, we think we share the belief that life and health are priceless.”

Simon Morritt, Chief Executive of York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, said:

“I would like to express my personal thanks to Drax and their partners in China for their support in donating facemasks to the Trust, to help us ensure we are well equipped to support our staff and care for our patients in the coming days and weeks.”

Drax Power Station

Will Gardiner added:

“We’re very grateful for the donation of the face masks from our friends in China – it is a great example of businesses working together to help people during this crisis. Through the C-19 Business pledge we aim to support more of those who are most in need.”  

The C-19 Business Pledge is targeting not just the immediate challenges of coronavirus, but also the challenges of recovery – and was born out of the huge response from businesses and universities involved in the existing Social Mobility Pledge, wanting to be part of a national effort.

The initiative has already received the backing of employers representing over 900,000 people, staff and students, throughout businesses and universities.

As well as Drax Group, they include BP, Barratt Developments, Everton Football Club, National Grid, DLA Piper, Persimmon Homes and Severn Trent Water.

Employers who sign up to the pledge give their backing to three main objectives built around employees, customers and communities. They will not only help Britain through the immediate challenges of coronavirus, but also through its recovery.

For more on the C-19 Business Pledge visit the website: www.c19businesspledge.org

ENDS

Media contacts

Ali Lewis
Drax Group Head of Media & PR
E: [email protected]
T: 07712 670 888

Aidan Kerr
Drax Group Media Manager
E: [email protected]
T: 07849 090368

Editor’s Notes

Drax is already a member of the Social Mobility Pledge which aims to champion social mobility and raise aspirations within communities local to its operations.

Employers who sign up to the C-19 Business Pledge give their backing to three main objectives including:

  • To support their own employees throughout and beyond this challenging time. For example, this could include practical support and advice on financial security, mental health, personal wellbeing as well as reintegration back into work for those who have experienced an extended period away from the workplace.
  • To publish clear and simple advice for customers. Where possible they could have specialist teams dedicated to supporting customers if they are having problems, such as those facing repayment difficulties and vulnerable customers.
  • To do what they can to help communities in Britain through the epidemic. Over the coming months we are likely to see a sharp increase in isolation, loneliness, mental health and household financial issues in our communities across the country. There will be an increased need for communities to come together with practical support, such as food deliveries, collections and financial assistance for organisations that specialise in supporting vulnerable people.

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

About the C-19 Business Pledge

Founded by former cabinet minister, Rt Hon. Justine Greening, and entrepreneur David Harrison, the C-19 Business Pledge aims to harness the power of business as a force for good in tackling the Coronavirus epidemic.

We understand many businesses will be working hard to ensure they are able to continue in this turbulent time. We acknowledge that this will involve difficult decisions.

But for those that can, we are asking them to help in the national effort with their employees, customers and communities. By mobilising that collective effort, we can support those most in need through this crisis.

Our purpose:

To encourage UK businesses and universities to be a force for good by making a commitment to doing what they can to tackle Coronavirus (COVID-19).

These objectives are not only about helping our country get through the immediate challenges of Coronavirus, they are also about the recovery. Business has a crucial role to play in helping to rebuild Britain over the medium to long term.

There are three ways that we believe businesses can have an immediate and long-lasting impact:

1) Employees

Businesses can join the national effort by developing Action Plans to support their own staff throughout and beyond this challenging time. For example, this could include practical support and advice on financial security, mental health, personal wellbeing as well as reintegration back into work for those who have experienced an extended period away from the workplace. For example Severn Trent Water have put clear action plans in place to protect their staff when making home visits and are prioritising vulnerable customers.

More immediately, it should include disseminating the latest NHS COVID-19 advice.

2) Customers

Businesses can join the national effort by publishing clear and simple advice for customers. Where possible they should have specialist teams dedicated to supporting customers if they are having problems, such as those facing repayment difficulties and vulnerable customers, as RBS has done.

This could include prioritising those customers who are isolated and vulnerable, ensuring they do not become disconnected and can easily access services, for example through priority helplines and dedicated support. Others may wish to consider waiving some fees for customers and suppliers who may experience financial difficulties as a result of the Coronavirus.

3) Community

Businesses can join the national effort by committing to help Britain through the Coronavirus epidemic. Over the coming months we are likely to see a sharp increase in isolation, loneliness, mental health and household financial issues in our communities across the country. There will be an increased need for communities to come together with practical support, such as food deliveries, collections and financial assistance for organisations that specialise in supporting vulnerable people.

The way Britain’s businesses work is changing. So too will their relationship with the communities they serve, bringing greater emphasis on grassroots community action.

This could also include support for community projects where they operate, as national wealth management firm True Potential, based in the North East, is doing by providing assistance to local hospices and charities that support the elderly and vulnerable.

The C-19 Business Pledge is driven by the Social Mobility Pledge – a campaign for businesses to be a force for good by delivering a level playing field on opportunity and boosting social mobility in the UK. The Social Mobility Pledge is a growing coalition of over 500 organisations; 450 businesses employing almost 4 million people across the UK, as well as over 50 UK universities representing over 1 million students.

Contact: [email protected]

 

Drax’s largest biomass shipment arrives at the UK’s biggest biomass handling facility

20 March 2020

Press releases
Immingham Port at night

The Zheng Zhi bulk carrier vessel transported 63,907 tonnes of Drax’s sustainable biomass from the US port of Baton Rouge in Louisiana. The consignment supplies Drax Power Station with enough fuel to generate electricity for 1.3 million homes.

The vessel berthed at Humber International Terminal in the port of Immingham – ABP’s largest terminal, on Friday March 13th.

Simon Bird, Director of ABP Humber, said:

“Our colleagues here on the Humber are working hard to keep our homes powered, our stores stocked and keeping Britain trading. A huge thank you is deserved for all those working through this time.

“ABP is working around the clock to ensure the wellbeing of employees and customers and the safe continuation of operations.”

Andy Koss Drax CEO Generation said:

“Drax Power Station is critical national infrastructure at the heart of the UK’s energy system and we take this responsibility very seriously, especially now amid the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) situation. We are doing everything we can to ensure that we maintain a continuous, stable and reliable electricity supply for millions of homes and businesses in the UK.

“This shipment of sustainable biomass from our pellet mills in the US – the largest yet – highlights the critical role played by infrastructure such as the ports and rail in our supply chain.”

The Zheng Zhi bulk carrier arriving at ABP Immingham. Its cargo of sustainable biomass wood pellets is destined for Drax Power Station -- the UK's biggest renewable power station.

The Zheng Zhi bulk carrier arriving at ABP Immingham. Its cargo of sustainable biomass wood pellets is destined for Drax Power Station — the UK’s biggest renewable power station. Credit: ABP [Click to view/download]

Over the last decade Drax has converted four of the power station’s six generating units to use sustainable biomass instead of coal. This has transformed Drax, which supplies 5% of the country’s electricity, into the country’s largest renewable power generator and the biggest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Humber International Terminal employs over 100 people and is the world’s largest biomass handling facility. The terminal is part of the Humber ports that have been working hard, 24 hours a day, in keeping Britain trading.

The Port of Immingham is a vital resource and powers one in ten homes in the U.K.

ENDS

Media contacts: 

Selina Williams
Drax Group Media Manager
E: [email protected]
T: 07912230393

Aidan Kerr
Media Manager – Generation
E: [email protected]
T: 07849090368

Annmarie Sartor
Communications Officer – United States
E: [email protected]
T: +1 318-801-0046

Editor’s Notes

  • The vessel completed loading at the port of Baton Rouge in Louisiana February 23. A cargo typically takes around 17 to 21 days to reach the UK.
  • This vessel is Drax’s 99th ship from its facility at the Port of Greater Baton Rouge. Drax has shipped 5.1 million tonnes from the Louisiana port on the Mississippi River since 2015.
  • Immingham on the UK’s east cost is Drax’s largest import terminal and is part of a supply chain that runs from coast to coast, including capacity at Tyne, Hull and Liverpool.
  • Having import capacity at both the east and west coast adds extra security and resilience to Drax’s supply chain and operations.
  • The vessel is carrying sustainable biomass from Drax’s three pellet mills in the US South, which manufacture wood pellets from sustainably managed forests.
  • Sustainable biomass is an important part of the UK’s long-term energy mix. Using sustainable biomass instead of coal at Drax Power Station has already delivered carbon savings of more than 80% and made Drax Europe’s largest decarbonisation project.
  • The latest Zheng Zhi biomass cargo breaks the previous record of 63,557 tonnes.
  • Video B-Roll of ABP’s biomass operations with Drax at Immingham can be downloaded for broadcast use here.
  • Captions for high resolution photos:
  • Additional photos from Louisiana:

About ABP 

ABP is the UK’s leading ports operator with 21 ports and other transport related businesses creating a unique national network capable of handling a vast array of cargo.

The company contributes £7.5 billion to the UK economy every year and supports 119,000 jobs. Our current investment programme promises to deliver an extra £1.75 billion for the economy every year.

ABP:

  • Handles over 1.5 million vehicles every year
  • Generates around one quarter of the UK’s rail freight
  • Has 1.4 million square metres of covered storage
  • Has 1,000 hectares of open storage
  • Handles around 90 million tonnes of cargo each year
  • Owns 5,000 hectares of port estate
  • Has 87km of quay

Our five-year investment programme across the group is worth £1 billion. Our investment is designed to respond to the needs of our customers whose business relies on our ports for access to international and, in some cases, domestic markets.

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

Drax Group CEO says Budget ‘demonstrates the government’s commitment to communities and businesses in the North’

11 March 2020

Press releases
Innovation engineer inspecting carbon capture pilot projects at Drax Power Station’s CCUS incubation area

“The funding pledged today for the development of two or more carbon capture and storage clusters demonstrates the government’s commitment to communities and businesses in the North – ensuring the region is well placed to take advantage of new opportunities created by a decarbonising economy.

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner

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

“By accelerating the development of vital negative emissions technologies like bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), which is being pioneered by Drax, we can permanently remove millions of tonnes of CO2 each year from the atmosphere.

“The Humber is the UK’s most carbon intensive region and home to 55,000 jobs in manufacturing and other industries. Decarbonising the Humber would therefore have a major impact – delivering for the environment and the economy, securing jobs and a long-term future for businesses which could otherwise be left behind.”

Background

  • Drax is already running a successful BECCS pilot at its power station.
  • BECCS is the only negative emissions technology which can produce renewable electricity whilst removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
  • By using BECCS, Drax will remove more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it produces, creating a negative carbon footprint for the company by 2030.
  • Drax launched the Zero Carbon Humber campaign last year with partners Equinor and National Grid Ventures, aimed at creating the world’s first zero carbon industrial cluster in the region. By using BECCS Drax could capture and store 16 million tonnes of CO2 a year and become the anchor for a net zero industrial cluster in the Humber region.
  • As part of its global leadership in addressing the climate crisis, the UK government is developing a policy and investment framework to support urgently needed negative emissions technologies like BECCS
  • The UK Committee on Climate Change’s ‘Net Zero’ report states that BECCS could generate up to 173TWh of electricity by 2050, capturing up to 51 million tonnes of CO2 – around half of the remaining carbon in the economy that the UK will need to capture to become net zero.

Photo caption

Innovation engineer inspecting carbon capture pilot projects at Drax Power Station’s CCUS incubation area. View/download.

Drax urges UK to seize the opportunities to build a zero carbon economy – Drax Group Director of Corporate Affairs Clare Harbord’s speech to the British Chambers of Commerce

5 March 2020

Press releases

Thank you very much it’s a pleasure to be here again. We meet today in extraordinary times.

Britain is forging a new relationship with countries around the world following our departure from the EU; The climate emergency is gathering pace; with unprecedented weather conditions facing people and business across the country, including on our doorstep at Drax Power Station in Yorkshire. And now we have the Coronavirus – which risks unleashing a medical emergency right around the globe and has already wiped billions off global stock markets. 2020 is set to be a challenging year for British businesses up and down the country.

But it will also, we believe, be a pivotal year for Britain in achieving its net zero emissions targets; Despite all of the challenges we face – this is a year of great opportunity for British business to take the lead in tackling the climate crisis and build a zero-carbon economy. Last week, in a landmark move for Britain’s energy transition, Drax announced that we would stop using coal to generate power after nearly 50 years. We will do so 4 years ahead of the current Government deadline of 2025.

For generations, Drax has been at the heart of Britain’s energy system. We are a strategic national asset, supplying secure, reliable power to more than six million homes and businesses in the North. But we understood a long time ago that coal no longer had a place in our energy system.

So we have embarked on the biggest decarbonisation journey in Europe, transforming the majority of our Power Station at Drax from coal to sustainably sourced, renewable biomass.

 We’ve cut our carbon emissions by more than 85% – further and faster than any other energy company in Europe. Today, more than 90% of the power generated by Drax is renewable – allowing businesses like yours to choose power that is both reliable and renewable. But at Drax, we won’t stop there.  We want to go further.

That’s why we announced our ambition to be carbon negative by 2030. In fact, Drax was the first company in the world to announce this ambition at the UN climate change conference in Madrid last year.

Since then, Microsoft – and many others – have followed us with similar pledges.

Let me tell you how we will get there. We are using pioneering British technology to capture carbon from bioenergy. In doing so, we are taking carbon out of the atmosphere and creating negative emissions.

Today, we are already capturing one tonne of carbon per day, but with the right investment we could be capturing up to 16 million tonnes every year. Think of that – negative emissions. On a huge scale. The UN and Committee on Climate Change tell us negative emissions will be vital if the UK is to reach net zero emissions by 2050. This is an exciting opportunity for Drax and the UK. And It is also a huge opportunity for British businesses and communities in the North, too.

At Drax, we are working with businesses from around the country to explore how to use carbon in new ways. We’re working with Econic – a cleantech company – to remove oil from plastic production. We’re working with Deep Branch Bio to create proteins that feed animals and plants. And we’re having discussions with airlines and Heathrow about decarbonising the aviation industry with renewable jet fuel.

Scaling up our carbon capture project will help the UK’s biggest industrialists in the Humber reduce their emissions and continue to prosper.  A Zero Carbon Humber by 2040 – that is our vision. This would transform the economic outlook of the region, which already contributes £18bn towards the UK economy each year and supports over 55,000 manufacturing jobs alone.

By decarbonising the region, we will protect the businesses that form part of the supply chain for energy intensive industries, as well as establishing new ones. Not since the first industrial revolution has the Humber had this world leading opportunity.

Our vision is to put the Humber – the UK’s most carbon intensive industrial region – back on the global stage as an example to the rest of the world of climate leadership in action, creating green jobs and clean growth.

We are working with academics at leading universities who are helping to create new businesses, new innovations and new products. Through forging these partnerships, we can protect and grow new supply chains to support the green economy.

Next week the Chancellor is due to deliver his first budget. This is the first major opportunity for government to demonstrate its commitment to ‘levelling up’ the economy by investing in infrastructure in the North and tackling the climate emergency. Our message to the Chancellor is clear – support for the Zero Carbon Humber project will help secure the future of our biggest industrial cluster and put the UK on the map as a global leader in the fight against climate change.

At the heart of our ambition to decarbonise the Humber are jobs and businesses. We must ensure people are equipped with the skills they need for the green jobs of the future.

That’s why we are spearheading a Zero Carbon Skills Taskforce, which will bring together employers, government, unions, academia and others to ensure that the journey to net zero provides jobs for the future.

Right now the future seems challenging and uncertain. But at Drax we are optimistic. We know that with the right support we can meet our climate targets and boost our economy at the same time.

We can help build workforces that are equipped to meet the demands of a green economy by boosting skills and opportunity.

And as Britain seeks to secure its place in the world – we can  seize the opportunities of infrastructure and new technology investment that will put our country and our businesses at the heart of a global green economy.

Thank you.

Drax urges UK to seize the opportunities to build a zero carbon economy

Press releases

Speaking at the British Chamber of Commerce Annual Conference in London on Thursday March 5, 2020, Clare Harbord Drax Group Director of Corporate Affairs said:

“By investing in the skills and new technologies needed to get the country to net zero, businesses can be world leading, creating new opportunities to develop and grow.”

Drax has announced a world-leading ambition to be carbon negative by 2030 by pioneering bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) – a ground-breaking negative emissions technology which is essential if the UK is to meet its climate targets.

It is also spearheading a zero-carbon skills taskforce in the North, aimed at ensuring the region has a workforce which is ready to reap the rewards of a net zero economy.

Giving the keynote address at the British Chamber of Commerce Annual Conference in London, Clare Harbord said:

“Despite all of the challenges we face – this is a year of great opportunity for British business to take a world leading role in tackling the climate crisis.”

She added: “We can seize the opportunities of infrastructure and new technology and investment that will put our country and our businesses at the heart of a global green economy.”

Through the Zero Carbon Humber initiative, being delivered in partnership with National Grid Ventures and Equinor, Drax aims to establish the world’s first net zero industrial cluster by 2040.

The Humber is the UK’s biggest industrial region employing 55,000 people in energy, manufacturing and engineering and as the most carbon intensive region in the country – taking steps to decarbonise the area would make a more significant impact on addressing the climate crisis than anywhere else in the UK.

“Our vision is to put the Humber back on the global stage as an example to the rest of the world of climate leadership in action, creating green jobs and clean growth,” she said.

“As the world’s attention turns to Glasgow and the COP26 conference this Autumn, there is no better time for government to show its support for British businesses and the British technology that is leading this fight.”

Read the full speech here. 

-ENDS-

Media contact:

Ben Wicks
Media Manager
E: [email protected]
T: 07761 525 662

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

Wakefield College visits Europe’s biggest carbon saving project

4 March 2020

Press releases
Wakefield College visits Europe's biggest carbon saving project

The group of 13 students aged between 16 and 18, visited Drax Power Station, near Selby in North Yorkshire, which has upgraded two thirds of its generating capacity to use compressed wood pellets in place of coal.

This has transformed the plant to become the UK’s largest renewable power generator – producing enough electricity for four million homes – and Europe’s biggest decarbonisation project.

It has also paved the way for Drax to pioneer ground-breaking bio energy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) technology. If BECCS can be used across all four of its biomass generating units, Drax could become the world’s first negative emissions power station, helping it to make an even greater contribution towards tackling the climate emergency.

Pupils were taken on a full tour of the site including the innovative BECCS pilot plant which is capturing a tonne of CO2 each day, the 427-metre turbine hall that houses the six huge turbines which power the generators to produce electricity.

They also enjoyed a close-up view of the UK’s first wood pellet storage domes, each large enough to fit The Royal Albert Hall inside, and the 12 cooling towers, which at 115 metres high are taller than the Statue of Liberty.

Drax Group’s Head of Business Sustainability, Vicky Bullivant, said:

“By providing tours at Drax Power Station we want to further students’ understanding of how electricity is produced and hopefully fire their imaginations and inspire them to study STEM subjects by showing them some of the pioneering technologies we’re trying, like BECCS, which could play a vital role in addressing the climate crisis.”

During the tour, pupils learnt how renewable electricity is generated and discovered how sustainable, compressed wood pellets have enabled Drax to reduce its carbon emissions by more than 80% compared to when those generating units used coal.

Nichola Bell, from Wakefield College, who organised the visit, said:

“The students had a great day at Drax, learning about how the electricity system works and where our electricity is generated. Visits like this are so valuable because seeing the power station and the scale of the operations is impossible to replicate in a classroom – it really brings the subject to life.”

Drax has a long tradition of supporting education and helping to inspire the engineers of the future by encouraging greater interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects. Earlier this year it invested £35,000 in the GreenPower initiative involving seven local schools and colleges in building and racing electric vehicles.

The Wakefield College students are among over 12,000 visitors to Drax every year. Tours are free to all primary and secondary schools and can be tailored to suit the area of the curriculum teachers are interested in.

For further information on school tours at Drax visit the website at www.drax.com/uk.

ENDS

Picture caption: Wakefield College students outside the biomass domes at Drax Power Station 

Media contact:

Lily Pettifar 
Drax Group Media Intern
E: lily.pettifar@drax.com
T: 07719 559 556

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

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

29 February 2020

Press releases
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

Drax to stop using coal well ahead of UK’s deadline

27 February 2020

Press releases
Coal pile at Drax Power Station, 2016.

  • Drax has announced that almost 50 years of power generation from coal at its power station in North Yorkshire, is expected to end next year – years in advance of the UK’s 2025 deadline

  • The decision is a landmark moment in the UK’s efforts to achieve net zero by 2050 and a major milestone towards delivering Drax’s world-leading ambition to become carbon negative by 2030

  • Drax is also spearheading a Zero Carbon Skills Taskforce to help people in the North gain the skills and expertise required to seize the opportunities as the UK moves towards a net zero carbon economy

Almost 50 years of coal-fired electricity generation at Drax Power Station is expected to come to an end in March 2021 – marking a major milestone in the company’s world-leading ambition to become carbon negative by 2030.

It means the country’s largest power station will stop using coal well ahead of the government’s 2025 deadline, making an even bigger contribution to the UK’s efforts to achieve net zero.

The decision to stop using coal at Drax comes after a comprehensive review of its operations. Drax does not expect to use coal after March 2021, but will ensure its two remaining coal units remain available until September 2022 in line with its existing Capacity Market agreements.

Drax CEO Will Gardiner said:

“Ending the use of coal at Drax is a landmark in our continued efforts to transform the business and become a world-leading carbon negative company by 2030. Drax’s journey away from coal began some years ago and I’m proud to say we’re going to finish the job well ahead of the Government’s 2025 deadline.”

Drax Power Station near Selby in North Yorkshire first started generating electricity using coal in the 1970s. Once the second half of the power station was built in the 1980s, it became the largest power station in the UK with the capacity to generate electricity for six million households.

Over the last decade four of the power station’s six generating units have been converted to use sustainable biomass, delivering carbon savings of more than 80% compared to when they used coal.

This has transformed Drax to become the UK’s largest renewable power generator and the biggest decarbonisation project in Europe.

Mr Gardiner said:

“By using sustainable biomass we have not only continued generating the secure power millions of homes and businesses rely on, we have also played a significant role in enabling the UK’s power system to decarbonise faster than any other in the world.

“Having pioneered ground-breaking biomass technology, we’re now planning to go further by using bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) to achieve our ambition of being carbon negative by 2030, making an even greater contribution to global efforts to tackle the climate crisis.”

Stopping using coal at Drax will lead to a reduction in the workforce at the North Yorkshire power station. Trades Unions and employee representatives will be consulted over the coming months and support is being provided to those affected.

Coal pile and biomass storage domes, Drax Power Station, 2016

Coal pile and biomass storage domes, Drax Power Station, 2016. Click to view/download.

Drax is talking to the government, trades unions and industrial businesses across the North about joining with Drax in establishing a new Zero Carbon Skills Taskforce to help people in the region gain the skills and expertise required to seize new job opportunities as the UK moves towards a net zero economy.

Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner

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

Mr Gardiner added:

“Stopping using coal is the right decision for our business, our communities and the environment, but it will have an impact on some of our employees, which will be difficult for them and their families.

“In making the decision for the UK to stop using coal and to decarbonise the economy, it’s vital that the impact on people across the North is recognised and steps are taken to ensure that they have the skills needed for the new jobs of the future.”

Drax’s plans to develop BECCS means it could be the ‘anchor’ for the Zero Carbon Humber initiative which aims to bring industrial businesses together to make the region the first net zero industrial economy in the world.

The Humber is the UK’s biggest industrial region employing 55,000 people in energy, manufacturing and engineering and as the most carbon intensive region in the country – decarbonising here would make a more significant impact on addressing the climate crisis than anywhere else in the UK.

ENDS

Media contacts:

Ali Lewis
Drax Group Head of Media & PR
[email protected]
+44 (0)7712 670 888

Selina Williams
Drax Group Media Manager
[email protected]
+44 (0)7912 230 393

Editor’s Notes

Drax Group has reported profits of £410m in its 2019 Full Year Results published today.

The Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund, Norges Bank Investment Management, recently announced it was revoking an exclusion of Drax Group from its investments, recognising the company’s move away from coal to biomass, which delivers carbon savings of more than 80%.

The end of coal generation will lead to a reduction in the workforce at Drax Power Station of between 200 and 230 people from April 2021.

Drax’s decision to stop using coal is an important step in achieving its ambition to become carbon negative. This means that by using bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) technology, Drax will remove more carbon emissions from the atmosphere than are produced across all its operations, creating a negative carbon footprint for the company.

By using BECCS, Drax hopes to become the anchor for the UK’s first net zero industrial cluster in the Humber region, allowing other industrial emitters to capture and store carbon dioxide, protecting jobs, creating clean growth and export opportunities.

Drax is a member of the Powering Past Coal Alliance, an initiative launched by the UK and Canadian governments, which seeks to end the use of unabated coal in power stations around the world by 2030.

The Powering Past Coal Alliance wants to accelerate the transition away from unabated coal and Drax is supporting its work to encourage members to scale up their ambitions, and to create more collaboration, helping prospective new members to move forwards in using cleaner energy.

Drax supports STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) education and employability initiatives in the communities local to its operations. In 2019 it recruited 18 apprentices across the Group including 13 at Drax Power Station. It also works with schools and colleges to deliver exciting STEM education opportunities and careers events and activities, which promote diversity and inclusion.

More than 9,500 people visited Drax Power Station in 2019, many of whom were students. The tours are free and are focused on learning outcomes.

Photo caption (main image): Coal pile at Drax Power Station, 2016. View/download.

Video: View/download 16:9; View/download 1:1.

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