Drax has acquired the portfolio which includes pumped storage, hydro and gas-fired generation and SMW, a subsidiary of ScottishPower.
The portfolio consists of Damhead Creek (805MW Combined Cycle Gas Turbines (CCGT) in Kent), Rye House (715MW CCGT in Hertfordshire), Shoreham (420MW CCGT in Brighton), and Blackburn Mill (60MW CCGT Blackburn).
Drax said: “Damhead Creek also benefits from an attractive option for the development of a second CCGT asset, Damhead Creek II, which provides additional gas generation optionality alongside Drax’s existing coal-to-gas repowering and OCGT projects.”
The acquisition also includes Cruachan (440MW pumped storage in Argyll & Bute), Lanark (17MW Hydro Scheme in Lanarkshire), Galloway (109MW Hydro Scheme in South West Scotland), Daldowie biomass-from-waste facility.
The acquisition is expected to speed up Drax’s development from a single-site generation business into a multi-site, multi-technology operator.
At the time of the announcement of the acquisition, Drax Group CEO Will Gardiner said: “I am excited by the opportunity to acquire this unique and complementary portfolio of flexible, low-carbon and renewable generation assets. It’s a critical time in the UK power sector. As the system transitions towards renewable technologies, the demand for flexible, secure energy sources is set to grow.
“We believe there is a compelling logic in our move to add further flexible sources of power to our offering, accelerating our strategic vision to deliver a lower-carbon, lower-cost energy future for the UK.”
ScottishPower stated that it is going to invest £5.2bn in the UK pipeline of renewables to more than double the existing 2GW capacity in the next four years.
ScottishPower CEO Keith Anderson earlier said: “This is a pivotal shift for ScottishPower as we realise a long-term ambition. We are leaving carbon generation behind for a renewable future powered by cheaper green energy. We have closed coal, sold gas and built enough wind to power 1.2 million homes.”
