A UK power firm has pleaded to the government to support its multibillion pound biomass plans.
Drax, which currently provides about seven per cent of the UK’s electricity, wants to develop three biomass facilities within the UK, expanding on its current operations at Selby, North Yorkshire.
However, concerns have been raised about the emissions from the £2 billion facilities as the firm’s coal-fired plant in Selby is already one of Europe’s biggest polluters.
If the company faces rejections before it makes a final decision on whether to kick start the project at the end of the year, there are fears it could be forced overseas to evade heavy regulations.
But chief executive Dorothy Thompson told New Energy Focus that she was confident a resolution could be met.
"We remain positive that regulatory arrangements will be put in place to support the growth of this form of renewable power," she commented.
The firm is keen to keep operations within the UK, which would be good news for the suppliers of biomass handling equipment such as elevators, screw conveyors and bucket elevators.