Bruichladdich Distillery Announces £2.65M Funding to Partner with Protium and Jericho Energy Ventures on Major Step Towards Decarbonisation Distillation
Distillery to receive funding for HyLaddie project that will pioneer sustainable green hydrogen energy technology
November 24, 2021 –Bruichladdich Distillery has today announced a significant step forward in its bold ambition to help decarbonise their distillation process by 2025, with major funding secured to pioneer industry-first technology. Innovative hydrogen combustion technology will be installed to heat the stills used to create Bruichladdich’s renowned Scotch, as well as their artisanal gin, The Botanist. The pilot project will demonstrate the ability to switch from fuel oil to sustainable hydrogen energy technology, covering part of the distilleries energy consumption in this early phase. It is a vital step towards decarbonising in the long term, where proof of concept could lead to many more adopting the technology. The green hydrogen boiler operates with zero greenhouse gas emissions, and is an example for distilleries across the globe to follow suit in reducing their carbon footprint.
The funding of £2.65m comes from the Green Distilleries Competition, funded through the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Net Zero Innovation Portfolio, and follows an initial feasibility study completed in the spring of 2021. It will allow Bruichladdich, and its energy partner Protium, to install an on‐site Dynamic Combustion Chamber™ (DCC™), a zero-emission hydrogen boiler patented by Jericho Energy Ventures’ (TSX-V: JEV; OTC: JROOF) wholly owned subsidiary Hydrogen Technologies LLCand licenced to Protium’s subsidiary, Deuterium, as a mechanism to meet heating requirements.
Dubbed HyLaddie, the project must navigate the installation of state-of-the-art technology within a fully operational Victorian distillery on the island of Islay, just off Scotland’s west coast. As a certified B Corp, Bruichladdich continually invests in its local community and hopes the project will demonstrate the capability of hydrogen to encourage commercialisation across Islay. A sustainable solution for the island’s remote location and infrastructure challenges, the heating technology has the potential to be integrated beyond distilling and into residential spaces, local government buildings, schools, hospitals, and beyond. In keeping with Bruichladdich’s industry-leading progressive practices, HyLaddie will also lay significant groundwork for similar-sized spirits producers across the world to up their own decarbonisation initiatives.
Douglas Taylor, CEO of Bruichladdich Distillery, comments, “Sustainability is in our DNA and is at the heart of everything we do. The funding for HyLaddie is a huge step towards our ambition of full decarbonisation and we can’t wait to bring the project to life with our partners at Protium. Many distilleries across Scotland are making serious steps forward in decarbonising their energy requirements, and we fully believe that hydrogen has a future in the Scotch industry. Our hope is that our proof of concept can extend to commercialisation across the island, and beyond, helping us hit the Scotch Whisky Association’s targets of net zero by 2040.”
This project marks the inaugural deployment of DCC™ in the UK following a feasibility assessment. The revolutionary technology is the only zero-emission, closed loop boiler that generates high temperature steam, using only oxygen and hydrogen that is reacted in a vacuum. The DCC™ does not require a smokestack or any other energy dissipating exhaust, eliminating any emissions of CO2, NOx and SOx. The only by-product of the reaction is water that can be recycled.
“We’re thrilled to work together with Bruichladdich, one of our first Scottish clients, to help decarbonise their distilling process and introduce hydrogen energy technology to the Isle of Islay,” remarked Chris Jackson, CEO of Protium. “Not only can Bruichladdich and The Botanist implement this technology to act as a beacon for sustainability in the spirits industry, but their deep community ties across Islay presents an exciting opportunity to mobilise an entire island as an example for decarbonisation across the globe.”
Commenting on the project, Brian Williamson, CEO of Jericho, said, “We are thrilled that the inaugural deployment of the DCC™ is with none-other than Bruichladdich, one of the most prestigious and progressive distilleries, who shares our vision of forging a sustainable future. We look forward to working with Bruichladdich and the Protium teams to implement the ambitious decarbonization project with our game-changing zero-emission technology.”
As the first B Corp certified distillery in the UK, Bruichladdich hasa long history of progressive sustainability practices that go beyond energy and into agriculture, community, packaging and waste. The distillery prioritises a higher purpose that benefits society and the environment, and is an industry leader in demonstrating business as a force for good.In line with HyLaddie and the sustainability initiatives from Bruichladdich Distillery, the news comes on the heels of an announcement from its parent company, Rémy Cointreau, who officially committed to the Science Based Targets by joining the “Business Ambition for 1.5°C” initiative -gathering companies with the most ambitious carbon reduction objectives. The Group also announced that its contribution to large-scale climate actions would enable it to achieve carbon neutrality from 2021/2022.
About Bruichladdich
Bruichladdich Distillery is located on the remote Scottish island of Islay and was built in 1881. The distillery crafts four different spirits including, Bruichladdich, unpeated Islay single malt Scotch whisky; Port Charlotte, heavily peated Islay single malt Scotch whisky (40PPM); Octomore, the world’s most heavily peated Scotch whisky series (80+PPM); and The Botanist Gin, the first Islay dry gin.
Bruichladdich Distillery matures and bottles all their single malts on the island of Islay. They are due to install on-site maltings in the near future, which will enable them to complete a proportion of their annual production on the island. Bruichladdich Distillery is the largest private employer on the island of Islay. www.bruichladdich.com
About Protium
Protium is a UK-based green hydrogen energy services company, engaged in designing, developing, financing, owning and operating green hydrogen and renewable energy infrastructure assets, to help our clients to achieve net zero energy emissions.
With offices in London and Caerphilly, and a growing presence in Scotland, they are pioneers in the transition to a distributed, decarbonised, future energy system. protium.green
About Jericho Energy Ventures
Jericho Energy Ventures (JEV) is a publicly traded, deep tech venture capital and incubator platform with roots in the hydrocarbon world, investing to accelerate the clean energy transition. JEV is highly leveraged to long-term decarbonization themes with a focus on the hydrogen value chain. JEV’s wholly owned subsidiary, Hydrogen Technologies, delivers patented, zero emission boiler technology to the $30 billion Commercial & Industrial heat and steam market.www.jerichoenergyventures.com
About Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy
The Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) brings together responsibilities for business, industrial strategy, science, research & innovation, energy &clean growth, and climate change. This funding has been made available from the government’s £1 billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio, which looks to accelerate the commercialisation of low-carbon technologies and systems, through its Green Distilleries Competition. The Green Distilleries Competition is providing funding for developing technologies that enable the use of low carbon fuel in a distillery.
