Drax Group (LSE:DRX) PLC has welcomed a government report backing the use of bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) in hard-to-decarbonise sectors.
The inclusion of BECCS in the report “is a clear signal that the UK wants to be a leader in carbon removals”, Drax said in a statement, adding it is “ready to deliver on this ambition”.
Drax reiterated that it is “in formal discussions with the government” over plans to retrofit the north Yorkshire biomass power station with carbon capture technology.
This would see emissions captured from the plant and transported to storage, such as depleted oil and gas wells under the North Sea, following billions of pounds of investment.
Bioenergy, though it still emits greenhouse gasses, is labelled as carbon neutral, given the fuel burned, such as wood, releases what it has previously absorbed.
According to the government’s report, “harder to decarbonise areas, technologies and sectors should be some of the priority uses of biomass”.
Paired, the use of biomass with carbon capture and storage could aid in the decarbonisation of the UK’s power, transport fuel and heating sectors, the government continued.
So-called “sustainable biomass” will continue to be rolled out this decade, the report added, with “unabated” emissions in the sector to be ended by 2035 through the use of carbon capture.
Shares in Drax climbed 1.6% to 582.6p on the news.