Drax releases end-of-year results, showing growth of biomass

British electrical power generation company Drax revealed its end-of-year results, which includes a 9% increase in the Group’s EBITDA to a total of £250 million (€291 million).

Regarding biomass, Drax outlined that it had opened its third US biomass pellet plant, whilst detailing its outlook on biomass as an ‘attractive’ investment option for growth due to lower biomass costs and a capacity expansion.

Biomass is also the company’s leading source of electricity, up from 65% in 2017 to 75% for the 12 months ending 31 December 2018.

Drax also revealed an increase in the availability of biomass has increased from 79% in 2017 to 91% in 2018.

“Drax is now one of the leading generators of flexible, low carbon and renewable electricity in the UK. As the grid decarbonises, our ability to support intermittent renewables will become increasingly important as we strive to deliver our purpose of enabling a zero carbon, lower cost energy future,” said Will Gardiner, chief executive of Drax.

“Drax performed well in 2018. Our commitment to operating safely and sustainably remains at our core. We commissioned our third pellet production plant, which contributed to our good results. After a difficult first quarter for our Power Generation business, we delivered strong availability and financial results. Whilst the year was challenging for our B2B Energy Supply business, we continued to grow our customer base and are investing in the significant opportunity created by smart meters.

“We are confident in our ability to continue growing our earnings and advancing our strategy through the year. We have attractive investment opportunities throughout our business, and while short-term uncertainty over the Capacity Market remains, we look forward to developing those opportunities in a disciplined fashion.”