The Herald
Summary
Transforming an industry that’s traditionally had to use significant amounts of energy into a zero-carbon operation is not a simple matter. The whisky industry is one of Scotland’s most famous exports and is a huge contributor to the Scottish economy. The pandemic caused the country’s 2020 exports to drop somewhat, from £4.9 billion in 2019 to £3.8 billion last year. However, Scotch still accounts for around 75% of all our food and drink exports.
The country has around 130 malt and grain distilleries, giving it the greatest concentration of whisky production in the world. Every one of these distilleries needs to bring in heat to brew up its magic. With Scotland committed to becoming a zero-carbon economy by 2045 the industry has a problem. How does it lower its carbon footprint while still bringing in enough energy to keep its processes going?
Given the complexity and sensitivity of the distilling process, installing heat recovery equipment in any spirits distillery requires considerable process expertise. Stirling-based process engineering consultancy Allen Associates has been using its know-how in process engineering to help famous brands around the world optimise their production and, where possible, recover heat for elsewhere in the process.
“If there was a way we could harness the waste heat and boost it back up to be re-used in making steam instead of consuming new fuel (whatever it’s source) we might just have the golden ticket.”
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