Drax chief’s pay packet jumped almost 70% to £5.4m in 2022

Campaigners say Will Gardiner’s pay rise comes from subsidies on energy bills paid for by public and accuse firm of greenwashing

The chief executive of the power station giant Drax, Britain’s biggest single source of carbon emissions, has seen his pay rocket almost 70% to more than £5m after a year when high electricity prices profits sent profits soaring.

Will Gardiner, who has led the power generator since 2018, received a pay package of £5.4m for 2022, up from £3.2m for the previous year. Gardiner’s package included a 10% increase in his salary to £631,000, a £966,000 bonus and £3.6m under a long-term incentive plan. The total renumeration of the Drax finance chief, Andy Skelton, rose from £2m in 2021 to £3m in 2022.