In the UK, power utility Drax Group, Brookfield Asset Management Ltd (Brookfield), and Radiant, Brookfield’s UK-headquartered AI infrastructure platform, have announced a new strategic partnership to jointly develop, deliver and operate GW-scale data centre capacity at Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire. This new partnership aligns with the Government’s AI sovereignty and reindustrialisation ambitions, and represents the next chapter in the site’s role in meeting national electricity demand, supporting Yorkshire and the UK’s economies while delivering a long-term future for the power station.
The Brookfield-Qai AI infrastructure joint venture will provide backing for the project. Qai develops AI infrastructure and proprietary platforms and operates under the Doha Investment platform.
This project is a major initiative under the Brookfield-Qai joint venture and forms part of our international AI infrastructure strategy. Drawing on the combined expertise of Qai and Brookfield in developing and managing large-scale critical infrastructure, and with Radiant and Drax delivering the project, we are helping to establish the infrastructure required to support the long-term growth of the UK’s AI ecosystem, said Abdulla Al-Misnad, Chairman and Managing Director of Qai.
Backed by Brookfield, Radiant is a vertically integrated AI infrastructure company combining utility-scale powered land, long-term capital, and a proprietary AI infrastructure software platform to build and operate AI factories for hyperscalers, enterprises, telecommunications providers, and sovereign institutions.
We are proud to expand our UK AI compute footprint with Drax. This is a unique opportunity for the UK’s AI ecosystem to build at scale. By designing, building and operating from the UK, it will give British researchers, startups and enterprises access to frontier compute at home. Drax has powered Britain for more than fifty years. Together we can power its AI economy for the next fifty, said Mahdi Yahya, CEO of Radiant.
Drax Power Station is at the heart of UK energy security and has supported the country’s growth for over 50 years, powering millions of homes and businesses and employing generations of local workers.
We are proud to be partnering with leading AI infrastructure providers on this project, which can help secure the long-term future of the site and protect hundreds of jobs, maintain a critical source of this country’s energy security, support northern growth and enable us to continue delivering for our local communities, said Will Gardiner, CEO of Drax Group.
Potential to unlock over £20 billion in investment
The companies are planning to develop data centre capacity on site in phases:
- Phase 1: targeting up to 100 MW compute capacity, operational from Q1 2028, making it one of the largest current data centres in the UK. The development, on land identified at Drax Power Station, will utilise existing infrastructure to import power directly from the grid, which will be managed by Drax. Radiant will lead on design, customer engagement and commercialisation, seeking to secure anchor customer commitments prior to initiating construction, and Drax will lead on land, power integration and planning;
- Phase 2: ambition to ramp up to 500 MW of compute capacity between 2028 and 2031, which is expected to utilise existing generation capabilities at Drax Power Station to provide a distributed energy and management solution (behind-the-meter) with around-the-clock power directly to a data centre under a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA), subject to necessary consents;
- Phase 3: ambition to develop options for additional data centre capacity post 2031, which would utilise the same behind-the-meter solution as Phase 2.
Brookfield estimates that total investment in the development could potentially exceed £20 billion, including an initial £2.5 billion as part of the first phase.
Progression of the first phase is subject to the timely progression of the necessary planning, as well as receiving the required regulatory and network approvals from Government and the system operator, in addition to securing a suitable tenant for the project.
Teaming up with Drax and Qai for this project represents a major opportunity for our AI infrastructure strategy. Our capital and deep operating capabilities will help accelerate the construction of a critical piece of sovereign AI, delivered by Radiant, our UK-headquartered compute infrastructure platform. In addition to preserving hundreds of jobs, this project will also create many direct and indirect jobs around the broader Yorkshire area, said Sikander Rashid, Brookfield Head of AI infrastructure.
Ideal site and conditions
The Drax power station estate comprises 1,000 acres (c 404.5 hectares) and 4 GW of grid access, with 2.6GW of active dispatchable generation and cooling systems.
The site also benefits from its proximity to the UK fibre network, making it ideal for faster and more certain development of data centres, while Drax Power Station’s role in supporting UK security of supply, providing low-carbon dispatchable power and critical system services will remain unchanged.
In November 2025, Drax signed a Contract-for-Difference (CfD) agreement with the UK Government to provide c. 6 TWh per annum of biomass-fired generation between April 2027 and March 2031, which equates to c. 30 percent of total annual baseload output from its 2.6 GW of active generation.
The CfD agreement includes a mechanism for Drax to request up to 500 MW of capacity being used to power a data centre during this period, subject to agreement with the UK Government and the Low Carbon Contracts Company, taking into account several factors in its decision-making, including value for money for consumers, energy security, and sustainability.
Drax Power Station is one of the few UK sites that can provide large-scale reliable power directly to data centre customers by utilising existing and underutilised generation capacity. We welcome the Government’s recognition that strategically important data centres need faster access to power and planning. The priority now must be turning that ambition into delivery, so projects like this can move at the pace the UK needs to compete for global AI investment, Will Gardiner said.
Aligned with UK Government ambitions
The companies welcome the Government’s new Data Centre Covenant and its pathway to accelerate time to power and planning for strategically important data centres.
The companies’ initial assessment is that this project aligns with the Covenant’s criteria, supporting energy security, delivering local community benefits, meeting environmental standards, enabling reindustrialisation and strengthening the UK’s access to secure infrastructure.
As we set out at the Budget, Britain must seize the opportunities of AI in a way that defends our national interest and ensures working people benefit. Investments like this will help pave the way to a new age of British reindustrialisation, creating good jobs in Yorkshire and delivering growth right across the country, said Emma Reynolds MP, Chief Secretary to the Treasury.
The UK Government is clear that countries able to host and power data centres will be better placed to protect their sovereignty, strengthen economic resilience, capture the benefits of the digital economy and shape the future of AI.
This investment from Qatar and Brookfield is a strong vote of confidence in the UK and a sign of the strength of our growing partnership with Qatar, which is driving technological advances and growth in both our countries. We are determined to make the UK the best place in the world to invest in digital infrastructure, attracting global capital to support growth, innovation and the industries of the future, said Chris McDonald MP, Minister for Science, Innovation & Investment.
As part of their shared commitment to delivering lasting local benefits, the partners expect to establish a voluntary community benefits fund, developed in consultation with communities around the Drax Power Station site, that is separate from and additional to any planning obligations and Drax’s existing community initiatives.
Data Centres are a critical opportunity for a thriving, modern economy, and by repurposing Drax Power Station to power the next industrial revolution, this provides the opportunity in the most suitable location available to create skilled jobs, boost supply chains, whilst delivering sovereign AI here in Yorkshire. This partnership between Drax and Brookfield is a clear signal of the strength of our region, bringing together leadership in AI alongside vital energy infrastructure to help enable wider re-industrialisation in the North, said Henri Murison, Chief Executive Northern Powerhouse Partnership.
A community consultation on the plans will begin shortly, with the formal planning process following afterward.
Data centres are critical national infrastructure and key sovereign capability in an uncertain world. Today’s announcement will help strengthen the UK’s deployment of next-generation AI and data centre growth, contributing to national resilience and economic security. Drax has an important role in the UK’s energy system, providing low-carbon, dispatchable power to support a secure and resilient electricity supply for homes and businesses. Partnerships such as this demonstrate how the UK can build on its energy expertise to attract infrastructure investment, supporting reindustrialisation and strengthening global competitiveness, said Trevor Hutchings, Chief Executive, Renewable Energy Association (REA).
