Drax cancels 3.6 GW CCGT power project in North Yorkshire (UK)

The UK energy group Drax has scrapped plans to develop the 3,600 MW Drax CCGT power plant project in Selby, North Yorkshire (United Kingdom), due to fierce opposition from environmental groups and despite a January 2021 ruling by the Court of Appeal that confirmed the UK’s government approval of the plant. Drax, which intends to become a “carbon negative” company by 2030, plans to focus on biomass, with a strategy targeting capacity expansion and cost reduction.

Drax announced plans to build the project in 2017 and secured the UK government approval in October 2019. In May 2020, the High Court of Justice upheld the approval, despite recommendations by the Planning Inspectorate to reject the project that could undermine the UK climate policy. The Drax CCGT project would have consisted of two 1,800 MW units and could potentially add two 100 MW battery energy storage systems (BESS). Once fully operational, the project would have produced up to 75% of the UK's energy sector's CO₂ emissions, prompting environmental groups to fight the project.

In December 2020, Drax signed an agreement to sell four CCGT power plants totalling 3.3 GW in the United Kingdom to VPI Holding, an affiliate of Vitol, for a total consideration of £193m (€214m), including £29m (€32m) of contingent consideration associated with the option to develop a new CCGT at Damhead Creek. The assets, which were acquired by Drax from Iberdrola in December 2018, includes Damhead Creek (812 MW) in Kent, Rye House in Hertfordshire (715 MW), Shoreham in West Sussex (420 MW) and Blackburn Mill in Lancashire (60 MW). The transaction is expected to close in early 2021.