Environmental permit variation granted to Drax Power Limited

It follows a public consultation on the Agency’s draft decision, which took place earlier in the summer.

The decision is based on Drax demonstrating that it has met and will continue to meet expected mandatory conditions as outlined in the permit.

The company applied to vary its environmental permit to incorporate carbon capture at its bioenergy plant near Selby.

The Environment Agency only issues permits or permit variations if it’s satisfied the operator can comply with the permit conditions and has appropriate systems in place to operate without causing harm to the environment, human health or wildlife.  

Ian Foster, Area Environment Manager at the Environment Agency, said:

We have reviewed the comments and evidence from the consultation into our draft decision and are satisfied that robust levels of environmental protection are met.

Environmental law sets out these conditions, and as a regulator we will issue the permit if we can find no reason that the operator would not be able to comply.

Decision document available

There is a decision document which explains in more detail how the Environment Agency reached this decision.

It also outlines the concerns raised during the consultation and how the Environment Agency has addressed these.

You can find out more about this here.

The operator first applied for the variation in May 2023. At the time, the Environment Agency held a public consultation to offer people the opportunity to comment on the application.

During the Environment Agency’s review of this 2023 application, it considered the applicant had not included sufficient information, so it requested a more detailed assessment.

Drax provided a revised air emissions risk assessment, including the potential substances that could be formed in the carbon capture plant. A second consultation was held in February 2025, before a third and final consultation into the Environment Agency’s draft decision earlier this summer.

Carbon capture is the removal of carbon dioxide from waste gases (usually by absorbing the carbon dioxide in a special solvent) and either using it or storing it underground, reducing the amount of emissions into the atmosphere.

Drax Power Ltd wants to capture the carbon dioxide emitted during electricity generation, to prevent the majority of it from entering the atmosphere.

The carbon dioxide captured will be transported for permanent storage under the North Sea.

The Environment Agency may only refuse a permit application if it does not meet one or more of the legal requirements under environmental legislation, including if it will have an unacceptable impact on the environment or harm human health.

If all the requirements are met, it is legally obliged to issue a permit. 

Further background

Environmental Permits

• Environmental permits set out strict legal conditions by which an operator must comply in order to protect people and the environment. Should an environmental permit be issued, the Environment Agency has responsibility for enforcing its conditions.  
• Our powers include enforcement notices, suspension and revocation of permits, fines and ultimately criminal sanctions, including prosecution.  
• We may only refuse a permit if it does not meet one or more of the legal requirements under environmental legislation, including if it will have a significant impact on the environment or harm human health. If all the requirements are met, we are legally required to issue a permit.