Drax Plans 100 MW AI Data Centre at North Yorkshire Power Station

Drax is proposing a large AI data centre at its North Yorkshire power station, using the site’s existing grid connection and infrastructure to support a project that could grow beyond 500 MW. The first phase is designed for 100 MW, with operation targeted for Q1 2028. The scale and schedule make access to power the project’s central engineering proposition.

The development is being pursued by Drax, Brookfield’s dedicated AI infrastructure platform, and Radiant. Initial backing is stated at £2.5bn, while the overall deal could be worth more than £20bn ($27bn). Those figures describe different aspects of the project: the first is the initial financial backing, while the second is the potential value of the deal. The available details don’t specify the project’s total build cost or how funding would be allocated across its phases.

Power access is the site’s main advantage

Drax says the power station has 4 GW of grid access and sits close to the UK’s fibre network. Its stated plan is to use existing infrastructure to import power directly from the grid for data centre customers. That makes the site’s electricity connection a key part of the case for locating computing infrastructure there, alongside the nearby communications links needed to connect a data centre to other networks.

The 4 GW figure refers to grid access at the site; it isn’t a statement that the proposed data centre will draw 4 GW. The first phase is planned at 100 MW, and the later phases are intended to take the development above 500 MW. The project details provided so far don’t explain how much grid capacity would be assigned to each phase, how that capacity would be delivered as the facility expands, or whether the full amount is already available for data centre use.

Drax chief executive Will Gardiner has described the site as able to provide large-scale, reliable power by drawing on existing and underused generation capacity. The company’s development plan, however, describes importing power directly from the grid. The information released does not set out the expected mix of electricity supply, how generation capacity would be used alongside grid imports, or the data centre’s power supply arrangements during outages. Those details will matter to customers assessing continuity and the facility’s operating requirements.

Three phases set the proposed growth path

The project is divided into three phases. The first is expected to reach 100 MW in Q1 2028. Phases two and three are described as following from 2028 onward, with Drax aiming to enable more than 500 MW of data centre capacity from 2031 onward. No individual capacity targets or completion dates for the second and third phases have been provided.

That staged approach ties the project’s eventual scale to delivery over several years. A 100 MW first phase would establish the initial facility, while expansion would require additional data centre capacity and the supporting site services that go with it. The published outline does not give technical specifications for the computing equipment, cooling systems, building layout, backup power, or the connection between each construction phase and the available grid capacity. These are substantial design questions for a development intended to grow several times beyond its initial scale.

The stated timetable is also a target, not a report that construction or operation has begun. Drax and its partners are working on a planning application, and a public consultation is scheduled for this month. The project’s next concrete milestones therefore concern the application and consultation; the details supplied do not give a construction start date or a confirmed date for final decisions.

Roles are split across development and design

Radiant is set to lead the project’s design and commercialisation. Drax says it will lead site development, drawing on infrastructure already at the power station. Brookfield’s role is described through its dedicated AI infrastructure platform, which is working with Drax and Radiant to develop and operate the facility.

This division places the physical site work with Drax and the data centre’s design and commercial development with Radiant. The available information does not identify the facility’s prospective customers, the computing hardware it would house, or the commercial terms under which capacity might be offered. It also does not say whether the proposed design is intended for a particular type of AI workload. Those points will shape how the facility is configured, but they have not yet been specified.

For engineers tracking the proposal, the useful test will be whether the next project details connect the headline capacity targets to a deliverable site design. The key items to watch are the planning application, the consultation, phase-by-phase power requirements and the systems proposed to keep the facility operating reliably. Until those are available, the clearest measure of the project is its stated path: 100 MW by Q1 2028, followed by a planned expansion beyond 500 MW from 2031 onward.