Drax generates £493m for the Yorkshire economy says new research

ENERGY company Drax spends £336m with Yorkshire and Humber businesses, as well as supporting 4,500 jobs in the region, according to new research.

Oxford Economics found that the energy company contributed £1.2bn to the UK economy and supported 14,150 jobs across the country.

It was found that Drax generated £493m towards the GDP of Yorkshire and the Humber in 2015 and used local suppliers including TEi, engineering and piping processors in Wakefield, which designed and installed 8km of pipework for delivering biomass to the generating system.

Oxford Economics said that its biomass project has thus far generated £203 million for the local economy and supported 3,450 jobs in Yorkshire and Humber.

The largest decarbonisation project in Europe, Drax has been working on converting its Selby power station from coal to sustainable biomass.

It said with the help of Government it would be able to convert the remaining 50% of the station to biomass.

But it has not all been plain sailing for the North Yorkshire business. The scrapping of exemption from the Climate Change Levy, was partially to blame for its decline in half year EBIDTA to £70m from £120m the year before.

Last year Drax Power Ltd generated £3.06bn in revenues, although pre-tax profits halved due to low energy prices and regulatory difficulties.

Drax Group chief executive, Dorothy Thompson, said: “This report shows Drax is supporting more than 14,000 jobs across the UK, with the vast majority resulting from our upgrades to biomass technology.

“The economic benefit has reached all parts of the country. We have been the catalyst for rejuvenation and growth across the Northern Powerhouse with port expansion on the coasts of East Yorkshire, the North West and North East.

“Drax is now the UK’s biggest single generator of renewable power. With the right support from Government we aim to upgrade more of our electricity production to using compressed wood pellets. This would provide a further boost to the UK economy, and deliver increased carbon savings.”

Sam Moore, managing director of consultancy at Oxford Economics, said: “Drax Group makes an important economic contribution to Yorkshire and the Humber, and the UK more widely.

“The Drax upgrades to use biomass in place of coal are also environmentally and strategically very significant, in the context of the wider challenges for the UK’s energy system.”