Source: Alstom 

Alstom and Drax announced that industrial gases provider BOC will join them as a co-developer on the coal powered 426 MW oxy-fired carbon capture and storage (CCS) project currently under development at the Drax site in North Yorkshire.

BOC was selected following a competitive process and brings world-leading technology in the field of air separation as well as complementary plant engineering and integration capabilities from its parent The Linde Group that will further enhance the deliverability of the project. 

The project will link into the Humber Cluster CO2 transport and offshore storage network currently under development by National Grid. The key partners in this industry initiative represent Europe’s strongest-ever industrial alliance to fast-track the commercialisation of CCS technologies. 

The project is a candidate for NER-300 funding, following the submission of the project by the UK DECC Office of Carbon Capture and Storage to the EU process in May 2011. The developers further intend to apply for support under the upcoming UK DECC CCS Demonstration Programme. The completed project will demonstrate the technical and commercial viability of CCS as a competitive low-carbon technology and an important part of the post 2020 energy mix in the UK. 

Stephen Burgin, Alstom’s UK Country President and Peter Emery, Drax’s Production Director said: “We are delighted to welcome BOC to the project development team and are confident that the combination of major industrial players now assembled has what’s needed to take CCS from pilot scale to full-scale operation in what promises to be a flagship project for the UK, Europe and beyond.” 

Drax Power Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Drax Group plc, is the owner and operator of Drax Power Station, the largest coal-fired power station in the UK. The output capacity from the station’s six generators is currently 4,000MW.