Core Viewpoint - Drax Group's trading update indicates a strong performance leading to an upward revision of full-year 2025 adjusted EBITDA expectations, supported by FlexGen, pellet production, and biomass generation [1] Group 1: Financial Performance and Targets - Drax is targeting approximately £3 billion in free cash flow from 2025 to 2031, with over £1 billion allocated to shareholder returns and up to £2 billion for new investments [2] - The company reported £2.3 billion in contracted forward power sales through Q1 2027, with biomass and hydro output for 2025 and 2026 fully hedged [4] Group 2: Strategic Developments - Drax is shifting towards flexible, dispatchable power and new load growth from data centres, aligning with the UK grid's transition to higher electrification and reliance on intermittent renewables [3] - The company is developing a pipeline of Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) projects and preparing a planning application for a 100 MW data centre at its flagship power station [2][6] Group 3: Asset Utilization and Growth - Drax's pumped storage and hydro assets have seen increased utilization since their acquisition in 2018, supported by 15-year Capacity Market contracts worth over £220 million [5] - Battery storage is becoming a core growth area, with Drax building a gigawatt-scale pipeline and completing two of three projects totaling 260 MW [5] Group 4: Future Outlook - The company is exploring a multi-stage data centre strategy leveraging its 4 GW of grid access and existing generation infrastructure, with plans for over 1 GW of data centre capacity supplied by renewable generation and carbon-negative BECCS [6]