Latest news with #Drax
Telegraph
31-07-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Energy giant plots UK wood-fuelled data centre
Yorkshire could become home to the world's first data centre powered by wood under plans to prolong the life of Drax, the timber-fired electricity generator. Its owners want to build an artificial intelligence (AI) data centre on land next to the power station where it can draw electricity via direct connections to the plant. Drax has been at the heart of years of protests from environmentalists because it is fuelled by burning wood harvested in North American forests and shipped to the UK. It says this makes the power it generates 'renewable' – a claim contested by green groups, which accuse Drax of promoting the destruction of forests. Will Gardiner, the chief executive of Drax, said the power station's current contracts with the Government, under which it has been paid billions of pounds in subsidies, will expire in 2031. As a result, the company is exploring alternative future revenue sources for the company. 'We want to see them renewed because Drax will be essential to the UK's energy security for many years to come,' Mr Gardiner said. 'But we are also looking at building a data centre on some spare land on the same site where it could source reliable green energy from our power station. We are talking to data centre companies ... It's a longer-term project that could be running by the end of the decade.' He said Drax was exploring offering 'power purchase agreements' with data centre operators under which they would get 'renewable' power at a fixed price and could then claim they were environmentally friendly. Mr Gardiner's comments coincided with the company's latest financial results, showing it made a profit of £281m after tax for the first half of this year, down from £463m in the same period last year. Drax is currently crucial to the UK's power supplies. The plant, near Selby, generated around 5pc of the country's electricity in 2024 by burning 6.4 million tonnes of wood, equivalent to 27 million pine trees. The site was initially built as a coal-fired power station in the 1960s and expanded in the 1980s to become the largest coal-fired power station in Western Europe. When coal became controversial, Drax announced in 2012 that it would convert four of its six units to burn biomass. By 2018, the conversion was complete, creating what its owners claimed was the UK's largest renewable energy power station. Last year alone, Drax imported 4.6 million tonnes of wood from the US and another 760,000 tonnes from Canada, with further deliveries coming from Brazil, Latvia and Russia. It has only been able to keep on burning wood by also burning money. It has received £6.5bn of subsidies from the Government since 2002, mostly under the Renewables Obligation Certificate (ROC) scheme – a subsidy whose soaring costs led to it being closed to new entrants eight years ago. Drax's ROC contracts are set to expire in two years' time but will be replaced by another set of subsidies from 2027-31 under which it will receive another £2bn, all paid for by levies on consumer bills.
Reuters
31-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
UK's Drax profit falls as power prices drop but buybacks extended
LONDON, July 31 (Reuters) - Drax Group (DRX.L), opens new tab reported an 11% drop in first-half adjusted core profit on Thursday due to lower UK wholesale power prices, as ongoing energy market fluctuations continued to impact the British power company. Drax, which has converted coal plants to run on biomass, provides about 5% of Britain's electricity. Adjusted profit, or EBITDA, fell to 460 million pounds ($611 million) in the first half, from 515 million pounds in the same period last year. The group said it does not expect changes to its adjusted EBITDA of 899-910 million pounds for the full year. Wholesale power prices in Britain have fallen over the past couple of years, after rising dramatically following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Drax also announced an extension to its current 300 million pound share buyback programme by an additional 450 million pounds over three years. Shares jumped 6.2% to 720 pence in early trading. Earlier this year, the government extended subsidies - called contracts-for-difference (CfD) - for biomass units that were due to expire in 2027 to 2031. The group said it expects to sign a final agreement with the UK government later this year for a subsidy its four biomass units. Under this subsidy scheme, Drax's power plant in North Yorkshire would be able to boost generation when there isn't enough electricity, helping to avoid the need to use more gas or import power from Europe. When there is too much electricity on the UK grid, Drax would be able to reduce generation, helping to balance the system. ($1 = 0.7535 pounds)
Bloomberg
31-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
UK Generator Drax Extends Buybacks With Investment on Hold
UK power generator Drax Group Plc will extend its share buyback program by £450 million ($597 million) over three years after it paused two major investments. The move by Drax takes total buybacks to £750 million. So far the company has completed about £272 million worth of buybacks out of the initial £300 million program it started last August. The pace has been faster than the company initially envisaged.
The National
03-07-2025
- Business
- The National
Plans for 1500 solar panels for 8 historic hydro power stations
If the proposed plans go ahead, Drax said it would help meet the back-up power needs of the hydro sites, which currently pay to source its electricity needs from the local grid. The energy firm said that although its proposals were at an early stage, the potential impact was 'significant', according to the BBC. READ MORE: Plans for European first microchip packaging plant set for Scotland creating 300 jobs Plant manager for Drax's hydro-electric power schemes in Galloway and Lanark, Martin McGhie, confirmed its proposals to the BBC. 'By generating renewable electricity on-site, we aim to power the schemes' auxiliary systems sustainably, supporting the operation of the core power generation components at each plant,' he explained 'Although these proposals are still at an early stage and subject to final design work and planning approvals, the potential is significant. 'The solar installations could generate up to 482 MWh of clean electricity each year, enabling us to generate hydro power with solar energy, and further reinforce our commitment to renewable generation.' The hydro scheme, which provides enough energy to power more than 400,000 homes, was bought by Drax in late December 2018. The Lanark system is made up of two power stations, with one located at Bonnington near New Lanark and one at Stonebyres close to Lanark. Commissioned in 1926, the Lanark system is one of the oldest in the UK. The Galloway scheme opened nine years later and comprises six power stations at Drumjohn, Kendoon, Carsfad, Earlstoun, Glenlee and Tongland which run from north of Carsphairn to near Kirkcudbright.
BBC News
02-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Galloway and Lanark hydro stations explore solar panel prospects
Hundreds of solar panels could be fitted to eight historic hydro power stations across the south west of energy giant Drax is exploring the option for its sites in Galloway and Lanark - some of which date back nearly 100 the plans go ahead they would meet the back-up power needs of the hydro sites which it currently pays to get from the local electricity company said that although its proposals were at an early stage the potential impact was "significant". Drax bought the hydro scheme - which provides enough energy to power more than 400,000 homes - in late December Lanark system is made up of two power stations – one at Bonnington near New Lanark and one at Stonebyres near is one of the oldest in the UK and was commissioned in Galloway scheme opened nine years later and comprises six power stations at Drumjohn, Kendoon, Carsfad, Earlstoun, Glenlee and Tongland which run from north of Carsphairn to near Kirkcudbright. Plant manager for Drax's hydro-electric power schemes in Galloway and Lanark, Martin McGhie, confirmed its proposals."By generating renewable electricity on-site, we aim to power the schemes' auxiliary systems sustainably, supporting the operation of the core power generation components at each plant," he explained"Although these proposals are still at an early stage and subject to final design work and planning approvals, the potential is significant."The solar installations could generate up to 482 MWh of clean electricity each year, enabling us to generate hydro power with solar energy, and further reinforce our commitment to renewable generation." If they go ahead, the plans would see about 1,500 solar panels installed across the eight hydro power panels would be fitted to the rooftops of the sites and be able to meet the auxiliary power needs of the facilities.
