Scottish whisky distillery in ‘world first’ move to tap into wasted wind power
“Heat-intensive industries like ours are under increasing pressure to decarbonise” – David Thomson, co-founder
A Scottish distillery is claiming a world first after commissioning a system to use otherwise wasted renewable wind power to heat its stills.
The pioneering decarbonised heat project is being rolled out at Annandale Distillery, which is near the town of Annan in Dumfries and Galloway, and was revived in 2014 by David Thomson and Teresa Church.
The project delivers high-temperature process heat using low and zero carbon electricity. This is said to represent a major breakthrough in the affordable decarbonisation of industrial heat, which currently accounts for almost a fifth of global carbon dioxide emissions and is notoriously difficult to decarbonise.
It is being delivered by Exergy3 in partnership with the distillery and industrial boiler supplier Cochran, supported by funding from the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero through its Net Zero Innovation Portfolio.
In this project, the system utilises wind power, which is the most abundant renewable energy source in Scotland.
The award-winning distillery aims to become one of the first in the world to produce low-carbon whisky.
Exergy3’s technology supports this ambition and forms part of the distillery’s 12-step decarbonisation plan, which also includes bottling and maturing whisky on site to reduce road miles, switching to electric vehicles where possible, and exploring alternative waste-reuse options for spent grain and carbon dioxide.
Distillery co-founder Thomson said: “This is a first - not just for the whisky industry or Scotland, but globally. Heat-intensive industries like ours are under increasing pressure to decarbonise, and solutions that can deliver high-temperature heat without fossil fuels have been hard to find.
“The fact that it does so economically, while also helping tackle the rising costs of balancing the electricity system, makes it incredibly powerful.”
Exergy3’s modular thermal energy storage system converts renewable electricity into thermal energy and stores it at ultra-high temperatures. The system then discharges hot air at temperatures of between 50°C and 1,200°C, depending on industrial requirements.
Markus Rondé, chief executive of Edinburgh-based Exergy3, said: “We are delighted to have partnered with Annandale Distillery to decarbonise one of Scotland’s most important exports and look forward to raising a toast with the very first low-carbon whisky of its kind.
“Beyond whisky, our solution could halve global industrial CO₂ emissions, while being cheaper than gas and reducing rapidly rising curtailment costs that are paid for by the consumer.”
Eric Daglish from Cochran said: “Across industry, we see growing interest in alternatives to fossil fuels as companies work towards their carbon reduction goals.
“One of the biggest challenges has been finding solutions that are both practical and economically feasible, but this technology shows that it’s possible. We are proud to be part of a project that marks such a significant milestone for the wider decarbonisation of industry.”
The technology is said to be widely applicable across industries including food, drink, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, fertiliser and cement. At Annandale Distillery, the system delivers hot air of up to 530°C, which is turned into green steam by a Cochran boiler and used in the distilling process.
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