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Drax - the environmental catastrophe providing 5% of the UK's power

Wood Burners, Biomass, Small Scale, Biofuels & Other Heating Alternatives

Last Post by Toodles 2 years ago

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AllyFish

(@allyfish)

Noble Member Contributor

Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 496

Topic starter 28/02/2024 9:10 am

If ever you need an example of what has gone fundamentally wrong with the UK power industry then look no further than Drax.

When privatised companies are handed huge subsidies and operate commercially, the incentive of maximising profits creates fundamental conflicts of interest and drives poor and unethical decision making.

Drax has received £6bn in UK tax payer funded subsidies to operate, and yet returns staggering profits The company posted an annual adjusted core profit of £398m in 2021, £731m for 2022, up 83% from 2021. For 2023 it expects to adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of £1.16 billion, up 59% from 2022.

And what is it burning to fund those profits, all while spewing 12 millions of tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere each year with no carbon capture and storage? Imported bio mass pellets (transported via heavy fuel oil burning bulk carriers) partly from historic forestry land it had pledged it would not source raw material from:

BBC.CO.UK "https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-68381160"

Drax: UK power station still burning rare forest wood - BBC News

Owner Drax, which received £6bn in subsidies, continues to burn timber from Canadian trees - BBC finds.

I wrestle with conscience sometimes lighting the log burner to burn some locally harvested seasoned timber or waste wood. I'm not felling ancient woodland to fuel it. Drax is burning 17,500 tonnes of dehydrated biomass pellets a day.

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Toodles

(@toodles)

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Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 2082

28/02/2024 10:32 am

Isn’t it time we developed a means of burning those invertebrates called ‘Hypocritters’ there’s plenty of them about!?

Regrets Toodles.

Toodles, he heats his home with cold draughts and cooks his food with magnets.

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Marzipan71

(@marzipan71)

Reputable Member Member

Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 102

29/02/2024 11:05 am

I struggle with this also - I calculated (lots of data available on the interweb such as here) that one return flight of a Boeing 777 from London LHR to New York JFK would burn as much fuel as me driving my car for 126 years at current annual mileage. I understand that a plane carries several hundred passengers and the per seat consumption is far less (about half my annual car consumption) and jet fuel is different etc etc but it does make me think - if one flight gets cancelled, I'll take that offset thank you. I understand the personal moral responsibility etc.

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Majordennisbloodnok

(@majordennisbloodnok)

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Joined: 4 years ago

Posts: 926

29/02/2024 3:36 pm

Posted by: @allyfish

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…

When privatised companies are handed huge subsidies and operate commercially, the incentive of maximising profits creates fundamental conflicts of interest and drives poor and unethical decision making.

….

Totally agree.

Of course, nationalisation brings its own unique brand of inefficiencies as well. Personally I wish I knew of a third alternative that avoids the greedy short-sightedness of the private sector and the lazy disinterestedness so often seen in nationalised services of the past. However I don’t and if I did I would be standing for Parliament.

I hasten to add that I’m not suggesting all private or public bodies are guilty of the stereotypical sins I’ve outlined.

105 m2 bungalow in South East England
Mitsubishi Ecodan 8.5 kW air source heat pump
18 x 360W solar panels
1 x 6 kW GroWatt battery and SPH5000 inverter
1 x Myenergi Zappi
1 x VW ID3
Raised beds for home-grown veg and chickens for eggs

"Semper in excretia; sumus solum profundum variat"

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Toodles

(@toodles)

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Joined: 3 years ago

Posts: 2082