Drax secures £500,000 Government funding for carbon capture study

Energy company Drax Group will explore using molten carbonate fuel cells as a technology for capturing carbon dioxide (CO₂) having secured £500,000 from the Government.

The funding will be used to investigate using FuelCell Energy’s molten carbon fuel cell to generate electricity, while capturing CO₂ from flue gases produced during the combustion of biomass for renewable power at Drax Power Station, North Yorkshire.

Once captured, the CO₂ will be transported to a horticultural site located next to the power station, to help improve its greenhouse yields.

Will Gardiner, Drax Group CEO, said: “We believe fuel cell technology could help us meet the rise in global demand for electricity, while capturing the carbon dioxide produced during its generation.

“Our Front End Engineering Design (FEED) study will help us understand the technical and economic feasibility of fuel cells, with a view to scaling the technology up, while showing that clusters of businesses working together to deliver climate change solutions, can also deliver benefits for their business.”

Chris Skidmore, Energy & Clean Growth Minister, said: “Technology to capture carbon will cut emissions as we work towards a net zero economy while creating new jobs – a key part of our modern Industrial Strategy.

“This innovative project from Drax represents a major milestone in efforts to roll out carbon capture at scale by the 2030s.”

The molten carbonate fuel cells technology, developed by US-based FuelCell Energy, takes the CO₂ from an external flue gas stream while also generating electricity.

It gives this method a potential advantage over solvent-based systems, which can consume heat and electricity in order to operate.

“Carbon capture using FuelCell Energy’s solution is a potential game-changer for affordability and efficiency of concentrating and capturing carbon dioxide from emitters,” said Tony Leo, Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Officer, FuelCell Energy.

“We are pleased to have the opportunity to partner with Drax and the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy for such an innovative and critically important subject as cleaner energy.”

The FEED study will investigate the potential for using the CO₂ from the fuel cell pilot to help improve crop yields.

Tomatoes and other salad crops will be grown in greenhouses owned by P3P Partners, which are next to Drax Power Station.

Philip Elborne, Business Development Manager at P3P Partners, said: “We are really excited to be working with Drax on their Fuel Cell carbon capture project.

“We pride ourselves on building and operating high quality, efficient combined heat and power systems and are committed to delivering the most value to our customers.

“Being able to use CO₂ from this system in our glasshouses will help us achieve this while supporting the goal to reduce emissions.”