Building and civil engineering firm Britcon has completed a £200,000 project for Drax Group Plc to extend a strategic store at the UK’s largest power station in North Yorkshire. This is part of an ongoing brief for Britcon with Drax with which it has maintained a relationship for more than a decade.
Drax Power Station in Selby is currently responsible for generating over 7% of the UK’s electricity. Following successes upgrades to the site through innovative engineering, it is now a predominantly biomass-fuelled generator. 70% of the electricity it produces – enough to power Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield and Liverpool – is now made using compressed wood pellets rather than coal. Recent announcements and an ambitions acquisitions programme set out targets to increase its renewable electricity supply in the UK.
Britcon has completed a 2,500 sq ft extension to the 16,500 sq ft Strategic Store that it built 9 years ago to house back up components for turbines in case of a shut down. The steel frame clad, high bay building designed to incorporate a 5T overhead girder crane, required groundworks, extensive paving and new barriers. Britcon Engineering Services (BES) designed and built the steelwork on the project at its manufacturing site in Scunthorpe.
As well as the Strategic store Britcon and BES have previously completed rail outload facilities, ash storage facilities, on site roads, switch rooms, lagoon repairs and ash pit projects all at the Drax site.
Paul Clarkson, Managing Director at Britcon said, “We are pleased to maintain a strong and trusting relationship with our fifth project in the last three years with Drax which continues to embark on innovative new practices to secure its place as a top five energy provider. We look forward to continuing our work with the Drax team for years to come.
Established for more than 25 years with a team of over 90 people in the UK, Britcon has a depth of experience working within the waste and renewables sector. It offers particular expertise and credentials in anaerobic digestion, waste to energy, energy production and storage generally and thermal and ground source energy and is an active member of the Renewables Network. Clients include British Steel, Lindsey Oil Refinery, BASF, Kemira Chemicals, and Associates British Ports.
