UK energy regulator Ofgem and Drax, the North Yorkshire power generator, on Tuesday announced the appointment of Forvis Mazars to conduct an independent external audit of Drax’s historical biomass profiling data.
It was announced in August 2024 that Drax would pay £25 million into Ofgem’s Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Fund after an investigation by the regulator found that Drax reported inaccurate data on the sourcing of some wood it uses to generate power.
Drax runs the UK’s largest renewable power station near Selby in North Yorkshire.
“Ofgem are announcing Drax Power Limited’s decision to appoint Forvis Mazars to conduct an independent external audit of Drax’s annual profiling data and associated reporting for the compliance period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 (referred to as CP22),” said Ofgem on Tuesday.
“This is a non-financial audit, focusing on operational and compliance data and relates to 98% of Drax’s international supply chain and their legal obligations to the Renewables Obligation (RO) scheme and is the largest audit of its kind.
“The auditor has been appointed by Drax following an open, fair and transparent process, where Ofgem was an active observer throughout. The independent audit will be completed to the internationally recognised standard, ISAE3000, and completed to a ‘reasonable’ level of assurance.
“Drax committed to the audit following Ofgem’s enforcement investigation into the company which concluded in August 2024. The timeframe for commissioning the audit was extended to ensure Ofgem was satisfied with the rigour of the tendering process.
“Given the complexity of the required audit, both Ofgem and Drax engaged closely with a range of prospective auditors to refine the scope to best ensure the outputs would meet Ofgem’s needs. Ofgem is satisfied that the subsequent tender process and the appointment of Forvis Mazars was competitive and appropriate.
“Whilst this independent audit is being led, tendered, commissioned and paid for by Drax, Ofgem will remain engaged throughout, to ensure confidence in the outputs of the commissioned audit.
“This will be achieved by the appointment forming a tripartite agreement between Ofgem, Drax and Forvis Mazars, with the audit commencing in September 2025 and conducted in line with the agreed terms of reference.
“Drax has agreed in full to the audit, its terms of reference, and to the consequences should any potential regulatory breaches be identified. Ofgem will receive the full audit report and will publish a summary of the findings upon completion.”
Neil Lawrence, Ofgem’s Director of Delivery & Schemes, said: “Ofgem takes accurate reporting extremely seriously. The onus is on generators to meet their obligations in full, including how they report their data.
“We are clear that consumers deserve transparency, which is why we have committed to publishing the findings of this comprehensive, international audit on completion. Ofgem will not hesitate to take appropriate action if it reveals any compliance issues.”
A spokesperson for Drax said: “We note that the appointment of an auditor into our historical biomass profiling data, agreed to at the time of the closure of the Ofgem investigation in August 2024, has been announced today.
“We fully support this independent external audit process, working with Forvis Mazars and Ofgem, to add further rigour and transparency to our profiling data reporting.
“We play a vital role in providing power when the sun doesn’t shine and wind doesn’t blow, so ensuring we are transparent about the sustainability of our biomass is an essential part of how we work.
“Following the competitive tender process to appoint an auditor, we are looking forward to working with Forvis Mazars and building on our programme of continual improvement.”