Drax, the operator of Britain's largest power station, plans to build an artificial intelligence data center at its North Yorkshire site. The company is working with Brookfield and Radiant, Brookfield's UK-based AI infrastructure business. The site could eventually host more than 1 gigawatt of computing capacity, Drax said in a stock market statement on Tuesday.
How much will Drax's AI data center cost?
Brookfield estimates the total investment could top £20 billion ($26.8 billion), including chips. The first phase would receive an initial £2.5 billion and target up to 100 megawatts starting in early 2028. The money would flow through a joint venture between Brookfield and Qai, a subsidiary of the Qatar Investment Authority.
“Drax Power Station is one of the few UK sites that can provide large-scale reliable power directly to data center customers by utilizing existing and underutilized generation capacity,” said Drax CEO Will Gardiner.
A three-phase plan that needs government approval
The estate covers more than 1,000 acres, with about 4 gigawatts of grid access and 2.6 gigawatts of generating capacity. The first phase would draw its power from the national grid. A second phase aims to add another 500 megawatts between 2028 and 2031, and this time Drax's own generators would power the data center directly under a long-term contract. A third phase aims to add more capacity after 2031.
Does Drax's AI data center need government approval?
The second phase requires the government's consent. Drax's subsidy contract for its biomass power runs from April 2027 to March 2031 and allows the company to ask to send up to 500 megawatts to a data center. The government and the Low Carbon Contracts Company would make the decision, weighing value for consumers, energy security and sustainability.
Gardiner told Bloomberg the plan would secure the station's future. “This gets us into the data center space and phase two and three locks in the long-term future of the Drax power station as part of UK energy system for another 50 years,” he said.
No tenant yet, and a grid connection to repurpose
The first phase still needs planning permission, regulatory and grid approvals, a tenant and a final investment decision from each partner. Radiant will look for anchor customers before construction begins. Drax is also working with the grid operator to repurpose its 100-megawatt connection, which was built for exporting power, Bloomberg reported.
Drax expects a public consultation to begin this month. The partners plan a voluntary fund for nearby communities. The government welcomed the plan in the partners' announcement. “Investments like this will help pave the way to a new age of British reindustrialization, creating good jobs in Yorkshire and delivering growth right across the country,” said Chief Secretary to the Treasury Emma Reynolds.
Long grid queues have delayed other UK data center projects, Bloomberg reported. Microsoft reportedly quit Nscale's UK site in October.
The emissions question
What are the emissions concerns about Drax's power station?
Drax burns wood pellets and produces almost 5% of the UK's electricity. Analysts say it is the country's single largest emitter of carbon dioxide, The Guardian reported. The UK does not count those emissions because Drax says the trees that grow back absorb the same carbon. The government has said Drax will play a “much more limited role” in future, and its subsidies will be halved between 2027 and 2031, The Guardian reported.
The government had previously rejected an earlier bid for the site, DatacenterDynamics reported. North Yorkshire Council, the University of York and Drax had proposed up to 1.2 gigawatts there as an AI Growth Zone. Britain is also debating whether to pause new data centers, and operators say power and labor are now their main bottleneck.
Cet article a été rédigé avec l'assistance de l'IA.
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