A new era begins

Drax and a landmark decision

TO MANY, the decision to end 50 years of coal-fired electricity generation at Drax Power Station in March next year will be the end of an era in a region which will always be proud of its mining heritage.

Yet, in many respects, it marks the start of a new era of green energy as Drax reaffirms its commitment to beat Ministerial targets and, crucially, also be carbon negative by the end of the decade.

As chief executive Will Gardiner declared: “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.”

Further evidence of the extent to which environmental policy is rising up the political agenda, and fuelling public opinion, the decision also confirms Yorkshire’s place at the vanguard of energy policy on the back of the commitment that worldleading firms, like Siemens, have already made to this region.

And while the switch means short-term uncertainty for the 200 Drax staff directly affected by the announcement, 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.

This means that communities are unlikely to see a repeat of the economic and social blight which became of the legacies of the coal mine closure programme – green energy is very much a growth industry and Drax is now well-placed to maintain its pre-eminence as one of the country’s largest producers of electricity for decades to come.