UK's Drax submits application to develop gas generation and storage project

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Drax Power Station, part of Drax Group (DRX.L), has submitted an application to planning authorities to develop a gas generation and battery storage project, the firm said on Wednesday.

Drax said in September last year it planned to replace the two remaining coal-fired generation units at its Yorkshire power plant in northern England with up to 3.6 gigawatts of gas-fired power generation and up to 200 megawatts of battery storage.

The project is called Repower.

Since then, the firm has been developing engineering and environmental reports for the application and a has carried out a consultation programme with the local community.

Britain's Planning Inspectorate has 28 days to decide whether to accept the application.

If it does, the proposal will then be considered by the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with a final decision expected next year.

Out of six coal-fired generation units at Drax's power station, three have been converted to biomass and a fourth is scheduled for conversion this summer. Its power station provides around 6 percent of Britain's electricity.

(Reporting by Nina Chestney; Editing by Mark Potter)