Overview
- The FCA will examine Drax’s statements on biomass sourcing from January 2022 to March 2024 and the compliance of its 2021–2023 annual reports with listing, disclosure and transparency rules.
- Drax said it will cooperate with the investigation, and its shares fell around 8% in early trading after the announcement.
- The inquiry follows allegations by former public affairs lead Rowaa Ahmar that the company misled over wood sourcing; Drax denies the claims and the parties reached a settlement after her tribunal case opened.
- Ofgem fined Drax £25 million last year for misreporting some Canadian wood data and, after reviewing KPMG work, said it found no evidence subsidies had been wrongly issued.
- Analysts said the investigation could affect the timing of finalising reduced post‑2027 support, as the Selby plant supplies about 5% of UK electricity under subsidies set to be halved with a windfall clawback.