News & Media

24th August 2021

PORT OF TYNE SEES LARGEST EVER WOOD PELLET SHIPMENT

Port of Tyne has discharged its largest ever wood pellet shipment carrying 62,522.49 metric tonnes of sustainable biomass pellets for Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire.

The consignment supplies Drax Power Station with enough fuel to generate reliable and flexible renewable electricity for around 1.3 million homes.

The vessel carrying the shipment, the 229m long Ultra Lynx, sailed from Drax’s port facility at Baton Rouge, Louisiana in the US.

The vessel was berthed and discharged at Tyne Bulk Terminal and the cargo transferred to the Port’s store before being reloaded and redelivered to Drax Power station at Selby, taking around 50 trains to move the material from the Port.

Drax has transformed the power station in North Yorkshire to use sustainable biomass instead of coal and now generates 12% of the UK’s renewable power. The conversion to biomass has helped Drax reduce its carbon emissions by over 90% in under a decade.

Drax’s Head of Logistics, Mark Gibbens, said: “Drax Power Station is critical national infrastructure at the heart of the UK’s energy system supplying millions of homes and businesses with reliable renewable electricity. This shipment of sustainable biomass from our pellet mills in the US – the largest yet through the Port of Tyne – highlights the critical role played by infrastructure such as the ports and rail in our supply chain.”