Amber to green: The Macallan’s drive for low-carbon whisky

Guests and workers at a renowned Speyside whisky distillery will be able to fill up with green power as 10 new electric vehicle charging units are installed in the grounds.

The move, by whisky brand The Macallan, will allow up to 20 cars and vans to be plugged in at any one time, helping the firm achieve its aim to run an all-electric fleet by 2025.

It comes ahead of the 2030 deadline, when no new cars or vans powered wholly by petrol or diesel will be available in the UK as part of work to tackle climate change.

Scotland has set a national ambition to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045, five years ahead of the UK-wide target.

A total of 10 new EV chargers have been installed at The Macallan distillery, in Moray

The Macallan has aims to be fully carbon neutral by 2030.

The distillery, which has been producing single malt whiskies since 1824, is sited at Craigellachie, in the north-east of Scotland.

The historical estate, on the banks of the river Spey, sits in an area of dramatic natural beauty with a rich ecosystem of wildlife.

Its grounds are home to more than 60,000 trees and 70-odd species of plants, animals, birds and fish, including wild salmon, red squirrels, badgers, otters and pine martens.

The Macallan - which opened a state-of-the-art new distillery and visitor centre, complete with a living turf roof, in 2018 - aims for its vehicle fleet to be fully electric by 2025

As well as committing to switching all of its passenger vehicles to electric over the next four years, the distiller has implemented a number of other eco-friendly schemes in a bid to cut its climate impacts.

In 2018, a state-of-the-art new distillery and visitor centre was opened on the estate.

The £140 million building was designed to complement the landscape and is topped with an intricately contructed living turf roof.

Natural by-products from the distillation process are repurposed and reused, while 80 per cent of the distillery's energy comes from renewable and non-fossil fuel sources.

Stuart Cassells, general manager at the Macallan estate, said: “Sustainability is a constant guiding principle for The Macallan, and we are continuously driven to explore new innovations that help us to reduce our impact in positive and lasting ways.

“We have been guardians of this 485-acre estate for almost 200 years and we have a responsibility to nurture and protect the land for generations to come.

“Our distillery already sources 80 per cent of energy from renewable sources, and we have a number of initiatives in place to help reduce our carbon footprint.

“The installation of electric vehicle charging points is the next step on our sustainability journey at The Macallan estate and an important milestone in helping us move towards a more sustainable future.”

ScottishPower, the first integrated energy company in the UK to generate 100 per cent green electricity, installed the new chargers.

Chris Carberry, Smart Solutions director at ScottishPower, added: “There are many steps on the journey to net zero and creating an all-electric commercial fleet is a hugely important one in the transition to a cleaner and greener future.

“In the year when Scotland is set to host COP26, the UN’s 26th annual climate change conference, and on World EV Day, it’s fantastic to be able to help such an iconic Scottish brand, who share our ambition of creating a better future, quicker, on their own sustainability journey.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We’re more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven’t already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.