The Yorkshire Post has collaborated with Drax Group UK to celebrate Drax Power Station’s 50th anniversary with a series of short films.
Today the country’s largest power station explains its world-leading ambition for decarbonisation by deploying BECCS, bioenergy with carbon capture and storage - carbon removal from the atmosphere in the process of converting biomass into energy.
For more information visit https://www.drax.com
Today the country’s largest power station explains its world-leading ambition for decarbonisation by deploying BECCS, bioenergy with carbon capture and storage - carbon removal from the atmosphere in the process of converting biomass into energy.
For more information visit https://www.drax.com
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Decarbonisation clearly has to be driven by innovative thinking and new forms of technology
00:21and real innovation, and I think we're pioneering that at Drax Power Station. Fighting climate
00:26change is really an absolute necessity so that we can continue to inhabit and enjoy
00:32the planet that we've lived on for so many years.
00:36Drax Power Station used to be the largest coal-fired power station in Western Europe,
00:43providing secure, reliable power for the UK, but its role has changed as the needs of the
00:50UK energy system have changed, and as our understanding of the need to decarbonise has
00:55changed too. So recognising the need to decarbonise, Drax converted to sustainable biomass. So
01:02we still provide secure power, but now we're able to do that in a way that's sustainable.
01:09The way that we've converted this power station to operate from coal to biomass is a really
01:14important transition in technology, and I think it's something that other coal-fired
01:19power stations around the world have looked at. But what's even more compelling and what's
01:23even more exciting is the journey that will go on after that, which is converting a biomass
01:28power station to one that can take CO2 out of the atmosphere.
01:32So Bioenergy Carbon Capture and Storage, or BECCS as we call it here at Drax, is actually
01:37where we capture the biogenic carbon dioxide that's coming off the flue gases, and using
01:43a process there, we can actually concentrate that up, then put it into a pipeline where
01:48it can be then transported to depleted natural gas reserves under the North Sea, where it's
01:53locked away forever.
01:56The work that Drax does will drive the energy transition, not only for the Humber, but for
02:02the UK. For the UK, it's essential to decarbonise the Humber. We are the industrial cluster
02:09emitting the most CO2 by far. So without decarbonising Humber, then the UK will not reach net zero
02:15targets. And with the pioneering technology that we have now coming and emerging with
02:21Drax working in carbon capture and storage, the Drax influence and the Drax progress means
02:29that the Humber as a whole will be at the forefront of the UK transition.
02:39So I've been working on trying to develop a carbon capture pipeline in Humber. This
02:43is critical technology that can help this really important industrial corridor decarbonise.
02:49And what I mean by that is, is a buried pipeline, a pipeline that will run in the first instance
02:55from Drax power station through the Humber region to the North Sea. And it will take
03:00CO2 emissions that we can capture here at the plant through the region and store them
03:05deep under the North Sea forever.
03:07Now the really interesting thing about the Humber is that that pipeline from Drax to
03:13the coast will go past a number of other assets that are also looking at how they decarbonise
03:18their operations with carbon capture and storage. So this pipeline will provide a means for
03:23the whole region, particularly the industrial assets to decarbonise and have a role for
03:28this economy long into the future.
03:31At Drax, what we're going to be doing is removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. And when
03:36we remove a tonne of CO2, we can convert that into a carbon credit. And those carbon
03:42credits are things that can be bought and sold on the market. So other corporates who
03:47want to decarbonise, they can look at their own carbon footprint and where they can see
03:52they've got remaining carbon emissions, they can buy a carbon credit to neutralise that
03:57carbon emission. So carbon markets are really effective ways of getting money into carbon
04:04removal projects. And at Drax, we want to be world leaders in setting the bar high and
04:11setting high standards and developing standards that the rest of the industry globally can
04:16follow. And happily, Drax has real experts in carbon accounting that we can draw on so
04:21that we can develop these high integrity standards using the fabulous expertise that we've got
04:25in the company.
04:27Drax Power Station is an international decarbonisation beacon. We are at the forefront of fighting
04:34climate change. And whilst there are many projects being proposed around the world
04:39that will prevent CO2 from entering the atmosphere or even help remove CO2 from the atmosphere,
04:45there's nowhere else globally that can remove as much CO2 from the atmosphere as Drax Power Station.
04:52So for the Humber, it puts us at the forefront. And very importantly, the new technologies
04:57and the learnings here can then be replicated around the world. So what BEX does is that
05:04it really helps the Humber be seen as a testbed for the energy transition. And going forward,
05:11that means that globally, we can reach net zero.
05:15This will put the UK at the centre of the global fight against climate change, helping
05:21to sustain our economy locally, having a critical national role, but showing the world that
05:27the UK is leading the way in keeping this planet in the state that we expect it to be.