The Future Of Drax Power Station
This first paragraph from the Wikipedia entry for Drax power station gives a factual description of the power station.
Drax power station is a large biomass power station in Drax, North Yorkshire, England. It has a 2.6 GW capacity for biomass and had a 1.29 GW capacity for coal that was retired in 2021. Its name comes from the nearby village of Drax. It is situated on the River Ouse between Selby and Goole. Its generating capacity of 3,906 megawatts (MW), which includes the shut down coal units, is the highest of any power station in the United Kingdom, providing about 6% of the United Kingdom’s electricity supply.
This second extract from Wikipedia gives details of its current biomass contract and subsidy.
Drax’s subsidy scheme was scheduled to end in 2027, with Drax arguing for an extension to 2030. In February 2025, the UK government extended its operation from 2027 to 2031, but at a reduced 27% maximum load factor using 100% sustainable wood, so it would run “less than half as often as it currently does”, generally only at times of high electricity demand. Drax was given a contract for difference at £113/MWh in 2012 pounds, CPI inflation linked so about £155/MWh in 2025.
Note.
- Rishi Sunak’s Government extended the contract.
- It will now run on 100% sustainable wood, which includes sources like sawmill residues, forest thinnings and certain agricultural products.
- It has a similar type of contract to wind farms and energy storage.
I asked Google AI,”Does Drax Power Station Provide Grid Stability?, and received this answer.
Yes, Drax Power Station—along with its affiliated hydro assets—provides critical grid stability to the UK. As the UK’s power grid shifts toward intermittent renewables like wind and solar, Drax’s dispatchable generation and specialized system support services help maintain a secure electricity network.
The key stability services provided by the Drax portfolio include:
Inertia: Drax’s large spinning turbines and pumped hydro facilities provide vital inertia to the grid. This acts like a shock absorber, helping to control changes in frequency (maintaining 50Hz) and preventing power cuts.
Reactive Power: The facilities help manage voltage support and move power efficiently across different parts of the network.
Dispatchable Power: Unlike weather-dependent generation, Drax’s biomass and hydro plants can be ramped up or down on demand, providing firm capacity and flexible response to real-time grid needs.
Pumped Storage Support: Through its subsidiary Cruachan Power Station in Scotland, Drax operates a pumped hydro storage plant that actively balances supply and demand and holds specialized stability contracts with the National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO).
So if you love or loathe the power station, it does a lot more than burn biomass to generate electricity.
Drax Power Station And Eastern Green Link Two
The Eastern Green Link Two web site is here.
This is the sub-heading
Eastern Green Link 2 (known as EGL2) is one of the most significant strategic energy infrastructure developments the UK has seen in recent years, connecting the north of Scotland to Yorkshire via the sea.
These two initial paragraphs gives more details.
EGL2 is a 505km electricity superhighway which will enable the transfer of power from Scotland to England (and vice versa) via a subsea cable. This two-gigawatt high voltage direct current (HVDC) cable is connecting Peterhead in Aberdeenshire and Drax in North Yorkshire and once operational, will carry enough electricity to power two million homes.
EGL2 will scale up the UK’s capacity to transport home-produced clean energy, predominantly from offshore wind, from where it is generated to where there is demand. By doing so it will increase the security, resilience, and stability of the UK’s transmission network.
EGL2 is the second of a planned seven interconnectors between Scotland and the South.
The first was the Western HVDC Link between Hunterston in Scotland and Flintshire Bridge in Wales, which became operational in 2013.
EGL2 will go between Peterhead in Scotland and Drax power station.
So electricity from Scotland will be able to replace up to two GW of the biomass, that Drax power station currently uses as fuel.
Drax And Solar Power
This Google Map shows Drax power station.
If Drax wanted to add solar power to the site, I’m sure it would be possible.
- There is plenty of space.
- There is a substantial connection to the electricity grid.
After the purchase of Bluefield Solar Income Fund, Drax probably are well-placed to develop as much solar-power as they need.
Arriving In Liverpool Lime Street Station – 10th May 2025
Liverpool Lime Street station has one of the more spectacular approaches of British railway stations, as these pictures show.
These sections describe the approach.
Crossing The Mersey
You cross the Mersey at Runcorn on the Ethelfreda or Britannia Bridge, which is described in this Wikipedia entry.
It was completed in 1868 and hopefully in a few years, it will be carrying High Speed Two trains between London and Liverpool.
On your right as you cross the Mersey to Liverpool is the Silver Jubilee road bridge, which is a through arch bridge that opened in 1961 to replace a historic transporter bridge. I am just a little bit too young to have seen the transporter bridge.
Further to your right, you can see the Mersey Gateway Bridge, which is a cable-stayed bridge, that opened in 2017 and is described in this Wikipedia entry.
Drax’s Biomass
As you approach Lime Street station, you pass through Edge Hill, where there are the GB Railfreight sidings, where the biomass trains for Drax power station are marshalled for their journey across the Pennines. These Drax trains seem to be one of the few freight trains in the UK, that carry advertising. Tesco trains also do, but their’s is just big letters.
In Do Cummins And Stadler Have a Cunning Plan?, I talked about the possible conversion at some date in the future of GB Railfreight’s new electro-diesel Class 99 locomotives to electro-hydrogen locomotives. These locomotives will surely be ideal for hauling Drax’s biomass trains across the Pennines.
I do believe that these Class 99 locomotives are the future of heavy freight trains in the UK. In Iarnród Éireann Looks At Diesel Loco Replacement Options, I write about speculation, that Stadler may build a version for the Irish.
Through The Edge Hill Cutting
From Edge Hill a deep cutting through the sandstone takes you into Lime Street station.
It looked good in the sun, but the first time I arrived in the city to start my studies at Liverpool University, it was chucking it down and the cutting was very dark and wet.
It was a very different welcome to that, which I got yesterday.
My Train Arrived In Platform 10
Liverpool Lime Street has two cast iron train sheds.
- The Western shed has platform 1 to 5 and generally handles trains from the East.
- The Eastern shed has platform 6 to 10 and generally handles trains from the South.
Note.
- Changing between trains is just a step-free walk across the station concourse.
- Both sections have their own taxi rank and full-size clock.
- The Ticket Office is in the Western train shed.
I just walked from my train to the Ticket Office, bought a Lancashire Day Ranger ticket and then walked fifty metres to my next train.
How many stations have such an easy change of trains?
Is Liverpool Lime Street Station Ready For High Speed Two?
Consider.
- I travelled North in an 11-car Class 390 train, which is 265.3 metres long and can carry 607 passengers.
- As the last pictures show, the train fitted easily into platform 10.
- High Speed Two plans to send 200 metre classic-compatible trains to Liverpool Lime Street, with each having a capacity of up to 528.
It looks to me, that these High Speed Two classic-compatible trains will fit into Liverpool Lime Street station, at any platform that currently accepts an eleven-car Class 390 train.
Looking on Real Time trains over the last few days, I’ve found eleven-car Class 390 trains using platforms 9, 10 and 6.
It seems that Network Rail’s engineers have done a superb job to turn the Grade II Listed station, into one of the best operationally.
Onward To Newbiggin-by-the-Sea For The Northumberland Line?
This is the headline on the Chronicle Live.
Plans Underway To Extend Northumberland Line To Newbiggin-by-the-Sea
And this is the heading on the Northumberland Gazette.
Plans Underway To Extend Northumberland Line To Newbiggin
Both articles say council officers have been asked to look at extending the line from its current terminus at Ashington.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the route onwards from Ashington to Newbiggin-by-the-Sea.
Note.
- Ashington station is in the South-West corner of the map.
- The yellow track is the route of the new Northumberland Line to Newcastle.
- The possible site of the proposed Newbiggin-by-the-Sea station is marked by the blue arrow.
- The route of the railway between Ashington and Newbiggin-by-the-Sea is marked by a dotted line on the map.
- There appears to be a country park and a museum complex with a railway about halfway between Ashington and Newbiggin-by-the-Sea.
There also appears to be other disused colliery rail lines going to other closed collieries, that may be worth developing.
At a first look, it doesn’t appear that extending the Northumberland Line to a new station at Newbiggin-by-the-Sea would be the most difficult of railway projects.
Woodhorn Museum, Woodhorn Colliery And The Queen Elizabeth II Country Park
This Google Map shows this attraction in detail.
Note.
- Woodhorn Museum is the fan-shaped building in the North-East of the map.
- Woodhorn Colliery is part of the museum and is to the South of the main museum building.
- The Northumbrian Archives are also on the Woodhorn site.
- The Woodhorn Narrow Gauge Railway is indicated by the lilac arrow in the North of the map.
- The Queen Elizabeth II Country Park is indicated by the green arrow in the West of the map.
- Across the bottom of the map, there appears to be a double-track railway, which appears to connect to the new Ashington station.
This is the sort of attraction, that is crying out to have its own railway station.
This Google Map shows the Woodhorn Roundabout on the A 189 to the South-East of the Woodhorn Museum
Note.
- The road to the North is the A 189 which leads to Lynemouth power station, which is fueled by biomass.
- The double-track railway across the top of the map, also goes to Lynemouth power station. Note it has a bridge over the A 189.
- The single-track railway to the South of the double-track can be followed almost to the centre of Newbiggin-by-the-Sea. It looks like it goes under the A 189.
It looks to me, that a single-track could easily handle two trains per hour to a single-platform at Newbiggin-by-the-Sea station.
The Future Of Drax Power Station
Drax power station is not liked by a lot of environmentalists.
I have been thinking about the future of the power station and the public company that owns it.
Drax power station has a nameplate capacity of around 2.5 GW running on biomass.
It also will be the Southern end of EGL2, which will be an undersea electricity 2 GW superhighway distributing Scottish wind power from Peterhead in Scotland. So the dreaded biomass hated by certain groups will be relegated from the Premier League of electricity generation and replaced by Scottish wind.
As reported in various publications, Drax has signed a deal in the US, so that the biomass can be used for the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF)
To my mind, the Drax site could be an ideal one for one or more small modular nuclear reactors.
- The large Drax site has been producing electricity for 52 years.
- In 1986, the site produced nearly 4 GW of electricity.
- I would suspect that the substations on the site could be enlarged to distribute 4 GW of electricity.
- EGL2 will bring in 2 GW of Scottish wind-generated electricity.
- The site has excellent rail connections.
- The site has twelve cooling towers and is encircled by the River Ouse.
- Could all this water be used for cooling the small modular nuclear reactors.
I believe that perhaps three small modular nuclear reactors could be built on the Drax site to backup EGL2 and bring a reliable source of sustainable power to Yorkshire.
Drax is also only about forty miles from the vast hydrogen stores at Aldbrough and Rough, so if Drax needed, if could use excess electricity to create hydrogen for storage.
SSE is consulting on a 1+ GW hydrogen power station at Keadby, so perhaps Drax should have a similar hydrogen power station on its site?
SSE Thermal Secures 10-year Contracts For Two New Low-Carbon Power Stations In Ireland
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from SSE.
These first two paragraphs outline the two projects.
SSE Thermal, as part of SSE plc, has provisionally secured 10-year capacity agreements for its two proposed new-build power stations in Ireland which would run on sustainable biofuel.
The proposed low-carbon units at Tarbert in Co. Kerry and Platin in Co. Meath received the contracts in the T-4 Capacity Auction to commence in the 2026/27 delivery year.
Note.
- Both plants would help to protect security of supply and provide flexible backup to Ireland’s growing renewables sector.
- This Wikipedia entry is entitled Renewable Entry In Ireland and states that by the end of 2021, Ireland had 4.4 GW of onshore wind, with the intention of adding 5 GW of offshore wind, by 2030.
- The proposed units will initially run on Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (or HVO), which is produced by processing waste oils to create a fossil-free alternative to diesel in accordance with EU sustainability standards.
- It looks like the two new-build HVO-powered station will back up the renewables.
- It is intended that the two new power stations will be in operation in 2026.
The two new power stations will be convertible to hydrogen in the future.
As at Keadby in Lincolnshire, which I wrote about in SSE Thermal Charts Path To Green Hydrogen Future With First-Of-A-Kind Project. it looks like SSE have developed a comprehensive plan to keep the electricity at full power, even when the wind isn’t blowing.
Conclusion
SSE Thermal are showing that in addition to gas, nuclear and pumped storage hydroelectric, renewables can also be backed up by biomass.
New Electricity ‘Superhighways’ Needed To Cope With Surge In Wind Power
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Telegraph.
This is the first two paragraphs.
Energy companies are pushing for the rapid approval of new electricity “superhighways” between Scotland and England amid fears that a lack of capacity will set back the country’s wind power revolution.
Businesses including SSE and Scottish Power are calling on the industry regulator Ofgem to approve a series of major new north-south power cables in a bid to ease congestion on the existing electricity network.
These points are mentioned in the article.
- Current capacity is 6 GW, which even now is not enough.
- Another 17 GW of capacity will be needed by 2033.
- Wind farms in Scotland have been switched off and replaced by gas-fired power stations because of a lack of grid capacity.
- Another 25 GW of wind farms could be built after leases were awarded last month.
Two North-South interconnectors are being planned.
Peterhead And Drax
This is being proposed by SSE and National Grid.
- It will be an undersea cable.
- It will be two cables, each with a capacity of 2 GW.
- Peterhead and Drax power station are four hundred miles apart by road and 279 miles as the seagull flies, as a lot of the route would be over the sea. So an undersea connection would appear to be sensible.
- Peterhead is on the coast, so connecting an undersea interconnector shouldn’t be too challenging or disruptive to the locals.
- Drax power station is a 4 GW power station and the largest in the UK, so it must have good grid connections.
This Google Map shows the location of Drax power station in relation to Hull, Scunthorpe and the rivers in the area.
Note.
- Drax is marked by the red arrow in the West of the map.
- The large body of water in the East is the Humber Estuary.
- Hull is on the North Bank of the Humber.
- Scunthorpe, which is famous for its steel industry is South of the Humber in the middle of the map.
- To the West of Scunthorpe the Humber splits into the Trent and the Ouse.
- The Ouse leads all the way to Drax power station.
I suspect an undersea cable could go up the Humber and Ouse to Drax power station.
Is it a coincidence that both Drax power station and the proposed link to Peterhead are both around 4 GW?
Consider.
- Drax is a biomass power station, so it is not a zero carbon power station.
- Drax produces around six percent of the UK’s electricity.
- Most of the biomass comes by ship from North America.
- Protest groups regularly have protests at Drax because of its carbon emissions.
- Drax Group are experimenting with carbon capture.
- Drax is a big site and a large energy storage system could be built there.
- Wind is often criticised by opponents, saying wind is useless when the wind doesn’t blow.
- The Scots would be unlikely to send power to England, if they were short.
This is also said about Drax in Wikipedia.
Despite this intent for baseload operation, it was designed with a reasonable ability for load-following, being able to ramp up or down by 5% of full power per minute within the range of 50–100% of full power.
I take this it means it can be used to top up electricity generation to meet demand. Add in energy storage and it could be a superb load-follower.
So could the similar size of the interconnector and Drax power station be deliberate to guarantee England a 4 GW feed at all states of the wind?
I don’t think it is a coincidence.
Torness And Hawthorn Pit And Torness and South Humberside
These two cables are being proposed by Scottish Power.
- Each will be two GW.
- Torness is the site of the 1.36 GW Torness nuclear power station, which is likely to be decommissioned before 2030.
- Torness will have good grid connections and it is close to the sea.
- Hawthorn Pit is a large closed coal mine to the North of Newcastle, with a large substation close to the site. I suspect it will be an ideal place to feed power into the grid for Newcastle and it is close to the sea.
- Just South of Hawthorn Pit are the 1.32 GW Hartlepool nuclear power station, which will be decommissioned in 2024 and the landfall of the cables to the massive Dogger Bank wind farm.
- As I showed earlier with Drax, the Humber would be an ideal estuary to bring underwater power cables into the surrounding area. So perhaps the cable will go to Scunthorpe for the steelworks.
- As at Drax, there is backup in South Humberside, but here it is from the two Keadby gas-fired power stations.
The article in the Telegraph only gives the briefest of details of Scottish Power’s plans, but I suspect, that given the locations of the ends of the interconnectors, I suspect the cables will be underwater.
Conclusion
It strikes me that all three interconnectors have been well thought thought and they serve a variety of objectives.
- Bring Scottish wind power, South to England.
- Connect wind farms to the two nuclear power station sites at Hartlepool and Torness, that will close at the end of the decade.
- Allow the big 4 GW biomass-fired station at Drax to back up wind farms and step in when needed.
- Cut carbon emissions at Drax.
- Use underwater cables as much as possible to transfer the power, to avoid the disruption of digging in underground cables.
It looks to be a good plan.
Shell Starts Up Europe’s Largest PEM Green Hydrogen Electrolyser
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Refhyne.
These are the first three paragraphs.
Europe’s largest PEM hydrogen electrolyser*, today began operations at Shell’s Energy and Chemicals Park Rheinland, producing green hydrogen.
As part of the Refhyne European consortium and with European Commission funding through the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU), the fully operational plant is the first to use this technology at such a large scale in a refinery.
Plans are under way to expand capacity of the electrolyser from 10 megawatts to 100 megawatts at the Rheinland site, near Cologne, where Shell also intends to produce sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) using renewable power and biomass in the future. A plant for liquefied renewable natural gas (bio-LNG) is also in development.
It certainly seems a comprehensive green development.
- It will be based on a massive 100 MW electrolyser.
- I estimate that the electrolyser will produce just under 45 tonnes of hydrogen per day.
As ITM Power is part of the Refhyne consortium, the electrolyser is being built in their factory in Sheffield.
This paragraph quotes Shell’s Downstream Director, Huibert Vigeveno .
“Shell wants to become a leading supplier of green hydrogen for industrial and transport customers in Germany,” he added. “We will be involved in the whole process — from power generation, using offshore wind, to hydrogen production and distribution across sectors. We want to be the partner of choice for our customers as we help them decarbonise.”
Shell certainly have green ambitions.
Velocys Signs Agreement For Commercial-Scale Biomass-To-Jet Fuel In Japan
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Chemical Engineer.
I am very hopeful about Velocys, who are a UK public company, that were spun out of Oxford University and do clever things in the area of chemical catalysts.
Velocys’ Fischer-Tropsch technology does seem to be a good way of creating sustainable aviation fuel from household rubbish and biomass.
Drax, Velocys Help Launch Coalition For Negative Emissions
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Biomass Magazine.
This is the introductory paragraph.
U.K.-based companies Drax Group and Velocys are among 11 organizations that have launched the Coalition for Negative Emissions, which aims to achieve a sustainable and resilient recovery from COVID-19 by developing pioneering projects that can remove carbon dioxide and other pollutants from the atmosphere.
This paragraph details the companies and organisations involved.
In addition to Drax and Velocys, members of the coalition include Carbon Engineering, Carbon Removal Centre, CBI, Carbon Capture and Storage Association, Climeworks, Energy U.K., Heathrow, International Airlines Group, and the U.K. National Farmers Union.
They have sent a letter to the Government, which can be downloaded from the Drax website.
Conclusion
I have an open mind about biomass and products such as aviation biofuel and techniques such as carbon capture.
Keeping the wheels of commerce turning, needs a sustainable way to fly and ideas such as producing aviation biofuel from household and industrial waste, could enable sustainable transport in the short term.
Carbon capture is very difficult in a lot of processes, but I feel that in some, such as a modern gas-turbine powered station, if they are designed in an innovative manner, they an be made to deliver a pure stream of the gas. A pure gas must be easier to handle, than one contaminated with all sorts of unknowns, as you might get from burning some sources of coal.
I am pleased that the National Farmers Union is involved as using pure carbon dioxide, as a growth promoter for greenhouse crops is a proven use for carbon dioxide.
Overall, I am optimistic about the formation of the Coalition for Negative Emissions.
The Debate Over Burning Dead Trees To Create Biomass Energy
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Wired.
This is the sub-title.
Critics worry about the risks of overcutting and wood smoke. But supporters say the practice will prevent megafires—which release even more carbon dioxide.
For those who worry about the ethics of biomass, it is a must-read.
The Anonymous Widower 