Drax has signed a deal with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) to use the Japanese company’s technology for its proposed bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) project.
The firm is planning to capture and store carbon dioxide emissions from two of the four biomass at its power station in North Yorkshire, with the aim of generating so-called “negative emissions”.
The long-term contract will allow Drax to utilise MHI’s Advanced KM CDR (Kansai Mitsubishi Carbon Dioxide Recovery) process at the plant in Selby and license its carbon capture solvent KS-21. It said the first commercial BECCS unit could begin operating in 2027.
Drax has already trialled the technology at the power station in a pilot starting in 2020 to test two of MHI’s propriety solvents (KS-1 and KS-21).
As part of the agreement, MHI plans to locate its core CCS team at its European headquarters in London. It is also considering the potential production of the KS-21 solvent in the UK.
Drax Group chief executive Will Gardiner said: “The world urgently needs to move from making climate pledges to taking climate action. This game-changing contract between Drax and MHI could contribute to a decade of global environmental leadership from the UK and provide further stimulus to a post-Covid economic recovery.
“Carbon capture technologies like BECCS are going to be absolutely vital in the fight against the climate crisis. Subject to the right regulatory framework being in place, Drax stands ready to invest further in this essential negative emissions technology, which not only permanently removes CO2 from the atmosphere but also delivers the reliable, renewable electricity needed for clean, green economic growth.”
Kenji Terasawa, president and chief executive of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, said: “We are very proud to have been selected as Drax’s technology partner and we firmly believe that our carbon capture technology will make a significant contribution to the UK and wider global community achieving their net zero targets. We look forward to expanding our presence in the UK and developing a centre of excellence for the deployment of carbon capture technology across Europe, the Middle East and Africa region.”
Drax began the process of applying for a development consent order for its proposed BECCS plant in March.