Drax Group Announces Construction is Underway on its Second Satellite Pellet Plant in Arkansas

The Drax Group announced on Friday (9-17-21) that construction is underway on the second of three planned satellite pellet plants to be built in Arkansas. The move is part of a $40 million investment by Drax in the state, creating approximately 30 new direct jobs and additional indirect jobs across Arkansas. The second plant will be located in Russellville (Pope County) with commercial operations anticipated to begin at the plant in 2022.

Earlier this year, construction began at Drax’s first satellite pellet plant in Leola (Grant County) and commercial operations are expected to begin late this year. A third and final site has been identified and progress is being made toward securing its future.

When all three pellet plants are operational, they are expected to produce approximately 120,000 metric tons of sustainable biomass pellets a year from sawmill residues, supporting the renewable energy company’s plans to increase self-supply to its power station in the U.K. The development of the “satellite” pellet plants, which are situated near sawmills, is part of Drax’s strategy to increase biomass self-supply to five million tons by 2027, improving supply chain resilience while reducing pellet costs.