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36-478: The company was established in 2001 as Oxford Power Holdings Limited; it was renamed on 28 October 2010. On 6 December 2016 it was announced that Opus Energy had entered into a binding conditional agreement for the sale of the entire issues share capital to Drax Developments Limited, a member of the Drax Group . The deal completed on 10 February 2017. In 2021 Opus Energy was the 2nd largest provider of business gas in

72-562: A black start capability to the National Grid , to enable utilities to be restarted without access to external power. It began supplying grid inertia in 2020. In June 2021, Drax applied to build a further 600   MW pumped storage system using the same reservoir, to a combined 1   GW for seven hours of storage. Approval was granted in July 2023, and Drax intended to complete the project in 2030. Several financing modes are possible for

108-452: A "clean" appearance, so the operational equipment is housed within the dam wall. The penstocks are a pair of tunnels, 260 m (850 ft) long and inclined at 56° from the horizontal with a 5.3 m (17 ft) diameter, which then bifurcate into four steel lined 190 m (620 ft) long, 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) diameter shafts. The penstocks underwent a major inspection and refurbishment in 2003. The power station

144-774: A day it already receives for burning biomass." After ministers overruled objections from the planning authority and approved the plant, a legal challenge was brought against the decision but failed in the courts in January 2021. However, the company announced in February 2021 that the plans for the new plant had been abandoned. On 3 October 2022, BBC Panorama aired an episode showing how pellets burned in Drax powerplants came from natural growth forest in British Columbia . Cruachan Power Station The Cruachan Power Station (also known as

180-475: A hard granite intrusion . Construction of the power station required the removal of 220,000 cubic metres (7,800,000 cu ft) of rock. Access to the hall is gained by a road tunnel 1 km (0.62 miles) long, 4 m (13 ft) high and 7 m (23 ft) wide, which is warm and humid enough to allow tropical plants to grow. The transformers step up the voltage from 16   kV to 275   kV for transmission. Six oil-filled cables carry

216-516: A network of 19 km (12 miles) of tunnels. Around 10% of the energy from the station is generated from rainwater; the rest is from the water pumped up from Loch Awe. The station is capable of generating 440 megawatts (590,000 hp) of electricity from four turbines, two of 100 megawatts (130,000 hp) and two of 120 megawatts (160,000 hp) capacity, after two units were upgraded in 2005. It can go from standby to full production in two   minutes, or 30   seconds if compressed air

252-606: A new 3.6 GW gas-fired power plant at Selby which was expected to produce 75% of the UK's power sector emissions once the plant was underway. A protest took place outside the company's offices in London in July 2019 and further protests took place in Yorkshire in August 2020. Protesters claimed that the company was asking for substantial subsidies to operate the new plant "in addition to the £2.36 million

288-793: A new acquisition debt facility of up to £375 million. In October 2017, Drax sold Billington Bioenergy for £2 million to an AIM-listed energy company called Aggregated Micro Power Holdings. On 16 October 2018, Drax Group announced that it had agreed to acquire Scottish Power 's portfolio of pumped storage, hydro and gas-fired generation for £702 million in cash from Iberdrola , subject to shareholder approval. Drax confirmed that approval had been granted on 1 January 2019. The acquisition brings with it Cruachan pumped storage power station, Rye House power station, Damhead Creek power station, Galloway hydro-electric power scheme, Lanark Hydro Electric Scheme , Shoreham Power Station and Blackburn Mill power station. On 15 December 2020, Drax Group announced

324-566: A re-financing and shares in Drax Group plc were listed on the London Stock Exchange for the first time. In 2009, Drax Group acquired Haven Power – enabling it to sell electricity directly. In 2015, the Group acquired Billington Bioenergy, specialists in providing sustainable biomass pellets for domestic energy systems. In 2016, Drax Group acquired Opus Energy for £340 million funded by

360-473: A result of privatisation , Drax Power Station came under the ownership of National Power , one of the newly formed generating companies. Over the years that followed privatisation, the map of the industry changed dramatically. One significant change was the emergence of vertically integrated companies, combining generation, distribution and supply interests. In certain cases, it became necessary for generation assets to be divested, and so in 1999 Drax Power Station

396-557: A series of standstill agreements with its creditors, the AES Corporation and Drax parted company in August 2003. During the restructuring, a number of bids were received from companies wishing to take a stake in the ownership of Drax, but creditors voted overwhelmingly to retain their interest in Drax. In December 2003, the restructuring was completed and Drax came under the ownership of a number of financial institutions. Almost exactly two years later, on 15 December 2005, Drax underwent

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432-409: A three-section 48 ft × 12 ft (14.6 m × 3.7 m) modernist mural in wood, plastic and gold leaf by English artist Elizabeth Falconer . The mural includes Celtic crosses , pylons, mythical beasts, and men of industry. The first section depicts the mythical Cailleach Bheur , who guarded the spring underneath the mountain. The middle panel commemorates 15 workers killed when

468-411: Is 7 m (23 ft) in diameter and 935 m (3,068 ft) long. The Cruachan Reservoir is 396 m (1,299 ft) above Loch Awe, and is contained by a dam 316 m (1,037 ft) long. The reservoir has a catchment area of 23 km (8.9 sq mi), and is capable of holding 7 gigawatt-hours (25 TJ) of energy. Environmental restrictions meant that the dam had to have

504-693: Is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index . In 2021, the company was taken out of the S&;P Global Clean Energy Index, as it is no longer considered to be a "clean" energy company by the S&;P. In 1990, the electricity industry of England and Wales was privatised under the Electricity Act 1989. Three generating companies and 12 regional electricity companies were created. As

540-575: Is on the A85 road , about 8 km (5.0 miles) west of Dalmally , on a branch of Loch Awe leading to the River Awe , which is the outflow from the loch, at its north west corner. There is a seasonally open Falls of Cruachan railway station nearby. Construction commenced in 1959, and the power station was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 15 October 1965. The concept was designed by Sir Edward MacColl , who died before it opened. The civil engineering design of

576-557: Is responsible for storing and loading the biomass at the Port of Baton Rouge ), Haven Power (an electricity supplier) and Opus Energy (a supplier of gas and electricity to businesses across the United Kingdom). The company has attracted a series of protests in the past: (i) a climate camp on 31 August 2006, attended over 600 people protesting against the high carbon emissions: 39 people were arrested after trying illegally to gain access to

612-554: Is the third consecutive year that its electricity is 100% renewable, where its electricity supply has been independently verified by EcoAct. Drax Group Drax Group plc , trading as Drax , is a power generation business. The principal downstream enterprises are based in the UK and include Drax Power Limited, which runs the biomass fuelled Drax power station , near Selby in North Yorkshire . The Group also runs an international biomass supply chain business. The company

648-401: Is used to start the turbines spinning. When the top reservoir is full, Cruachan can operate for 22   hours before the supply of water is exhausted. At full power, the turbines can pump at 167 cubic metres (5,900 cu ft) per second and generate at 200 cubic metres (7,100 cu ft) per second. The power station is required to keep a 12-hour water supply in order to provide

684-526: The Cruachan Dam ) is a pumped-storage hydroelectric power station in Argyll and Bute , Scotland, UK. The scheme can provide 440   MW of power and produced 705   GWh in 2009. The turbine hall is located inside Ben Cruachan , and the scheme moves water between Cruachan Reservoir and Loch Awe , a height difference of 396 m (1,299 ft). It is one of only four pumped storage power stations in

720-459: The South of Scotland Electricity Board . It was owned by ScottishPower from the privatisation of Britain's electricity industry in 1990 until Drax Group purchased it along with other ScottishPower assets on 1 January 2019. Maintenance of the penstocks , which formerly required them to be drained, is now done using a remotely operated underwater vehicle . To commemorate the 50th anniversary of

756-511: The 360 megawatts (480,000 hp) Ffestiniog Power Station (Wales, 1963). It is one of four pumped storage schemes in the United Kingdom. Its construction was linked to that of Hunterston A nuclear power station , to store surplus night-time nuclear-generated electrical energy. The power station was originally operated by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board , before being transferred to

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792-437: The UK and the 5th largest provider of business electricity. Opus Energy sources its electricity from renewable sources. Opus Energy provides a power purchase agreement product whereby it offers to buy excess power from companies who create their own renewable energy . On Thursday 8 October 2020, Opus Energy announced that its Fuel Mix Disclosure for the reporting period April 2019 to March 2020 remained 100% renewable. It

828-577: The United Kingdom, and is capable of providing a black start capability to the National Grid . Construction began in 1959 to coincide with the Hunterston A nuclear power station in Ayrshire. Cruachan uses cheap electricity generated at night to pump water to the higher reservoir, which can then be released during the day to provide power as necessary. The power station is open to visitors, and around 50,000   tourists visit it each year. The power station

864-487: The electric current up a cable shaft to a point in front of the dam, and from there it is carried on pylons to Dalmally 8 km (5.0 miles) to the east. The staircase in the cable shaft has 1,420   steps, making it the tallest in Britain. After passing through the turbines, the water enters a surge chamber designed to balance fluctuations in the level of water before entering the tailrace tunnel to Loch Awe, which

900-451: The end of popular television programmes . Despite the use of some rainwater, Cruachan is not a net generator of electricity: it uses more energy for pumping water and spinning its turbines than it generates. Water is pumped from Loch Awe to the upper reservoir, 396 m (1,299 ft) above, during periods of low energy use (most often at night), and then released when needed. The upper reservoir also receives rainwater, supplemented by

936-529: The grid. Drax had previously stated that the facilities would start in Autumn 2024. Drax Group's key asset is Drax Power Station. Originally built, owned and operated by the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB), Drax Power Station was constructed and commissioned in two stages. Stage one (units 1, 2 and 3) was completed in 1974. Some 12 years later in 1986, stage two (units 4, 5 and 6)

972-471: The plant, (ii) a train protest on 13 June 2008, attended by 30 climate change campaigners who halted an EWS coal train en route to the station, and (iii) a worker strike on 18 June 2009, when up to 200 contractors walked out of or failed to show up in a wildcat strike . Also in October 2011 a fire started by spontaneous combustion in a stockpile at the Port of Tyne biomass facility. Another fire occurred at

1008-459: The sale of Rye House, Damhead Creek, Shoreham and Blackburn Mill to VPI Holdings for £193.3m. On 13 April 2021, Drax announced that it had completed the acquisition of Pinnacle Renewable Energy Inc. In November 2024, Drax Group Plc pushed back the start of three new gas-fired power stations in South Wales, Suffolk, and Bedfordshire to next year because of delays in getting the units connected to

1044-494: The same facility in a conveyor transfer tower in October 2013. A "virtual protest" was held in April 2020 by Biofuelwatch, which claims that Drax is the UK's largest emitter of carbon dioxide and that the wood pellets Drax burns are leading to the destruction of forests in the southern United States. Protesters also claim that the company is burning more wood than any other power station in the world. The company had proposed to build

1080-470: The scheme was £24.5 million . Cruachan was one of the first reversible pumped-storage systems , where the same turbines are used as both pumps and generators. Previous pumped-storage systems used separate pumps with a network of pipes to return water to the upper reservoir, making them more expensive to build than conventional hydroelectric systems. Cruachan is pre-dated by the smaller 232 megawatts (311,000 hp) Lünerseewerk ( de ) (Austria, 1958) and

1116-434: The scheme was carried out by James Williamson & Partners of Glasgow, and the main project contractors were William Tawse of Aberdeen and Edmund Nuttall of Camberley. Consulting electrical engineers were Merz & McLellan of Newcastle upon Tyne. At the peak of the construction, there were around 4,000   people working on the project. Thirty-six men died in the construction of the power station and dam. The cost of

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1152-456: The station's opening, a 2015 BBC radio documentary Inside the Rock described its construction. The Cruachan station temporarily stores energy at times of low demand, and releases it at times of high demand, when electricity prices are higher, reducing the maximum power that must be provided by other power stations. It is also used to cope with sudden surges in the demand for electricity, such as at

1188-508: The £500M project. Seismic surveys began in June 2024. There are four Francis turbines , which operate as both pumps and generators. These are housed in a cavern within Ben Cruachan , which is 91.5 m (300 ft) long, 23.5 m (77 ft) wide and 38 m (125 ft) high, with an adjacent transformer hall. The chamber is at a depth of around 300 m (980 ft), and is within

1224-674: Was acquired by the US-based AES Corporation for £1.87 billion (US$ 3 billion). A partial re-financing of Drax was completed in 2000, with £400 million of senior bonds being issued by AES Drax Holdings, and £267 million of subordinated debt issued by AES Drax Energy. Increased competition, over-capacity and new trading arrangements contributed to a significant drop in wholesale electricity prices, which hit an all-time low in 2002. Many companies experienced financial problems, and Drax Power Station's major customer went into administration, triggering financial difficulties for Drax. Following

1260-532: Was completed. Drax was the last coal-fired power station to be built in the UK, and was initially designed to use low-sulphur coal from the nearby Selby coalfield in six generating units. Each unit has a capacity of 660 MW when burning coal, giving a total capacity of just under 4 GW. This made Drax the largest power station in the UK. Related enterprises include Drax Biomass (which specialises in producing biomass pellets to be used to generate electricity and fuel domestic heating systems), Baton Rouge Transit (which

1296-459: Was listed by the conservation organisation DoCoMoMo as one of the sixty key monuments of post-war Scottish architecture. In November 2012, the power station received the Institution of Mechanical Engineers ' Engineering Heritage Award . A visitor centre , refurbished in 2009, is sited by the outflow to Loch Awe and receives around 50,000   visitors a year. The power station houses

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