Whisky has been produced in Scotland for centuries. But with the Scottish Government setting ambitious net zero emissions targets, production methods are evolving for whisky. New projects to decarbonise the industry powered by green hydrogen are gaining traction and offer an exciting future for this historic industry.

The importance of clean whisky production

Scotland's whisky industry is worth £6.2 billion to the Scottish economy a year. It accounts for more than 25% of the UK’s total food and drink exports. However, production on this scale also requires huge amounts of energy. Scotland’s 148 distilleries consume around 3.7 terawatt hours (TWh) of energy every year. 
 
While the Scottish Government aims to reach net zero by 2045, the whisky industry seeks to get there five years earlier. To decarbonise by 2040, distilleries must harness zero-emission energy sources. A key solution in this transition will be hydrogen. 
 
The UK Government has acknowledged the importance of the whisky industry and its switch to clean energy by funding several notable hydrogen projects. Such funding is vital considering the high expense involved with developing this new energy source. Crucially, costs are expected to fall as demand grows.

Innovations in whisky manufacturing in Scotland

Project WhiskHy, developed by a consortium headed by Supercritical, is a company dedicated to developing a high-pressure electrolyser to split water into its chemical elements. This type of high-pressure technology is expected to reduce the costs of pressurised hydrogen while maintaining high levels of efficiency. 
 
To help deliver these ambitions, Project WhiskHy has partnered with two Scottish distilleries owned by Beam Suntory. The global spirits producer has committed to halving its emissions from direct operations by 2030. This partnership was made possible through Scottish Enterprise, the national economic development agency of Scotland. 
 
In June 2023, Scottish Enterprise published a comprehensive study into the potential benefits of hydrogen to the Scottish whisky industry. This document is being consulted as the hydrogen sector develops. 
 
Project WhiskHy is now progressing to its second phase. To support this, the UK Department for Business and Trade is providing £2.94 million in funding. Beam Suntory’s Glen Garioch Distillery has been chosen as the site for an experimental scale-up of the electrolyser. In phase one, the electrolyser was used to produce hydrogen from wastewater. In phase two, the aim is to scale up the electrolyser and conduct an industrial hydrogen trial. 
 
Clean hydrogen technology could enable the reintroduction of more traditional processes in whisky production. Direct firing boils the whisky to temperatures as high as 1,000°C. However, this process has been abandoned by many distilleries due to the high carbon impact. Nevertheless, using such intense heat results in increased chemical reactions in the liquid, deepening the flavour profile of the finished whisky. 

It is believed that achieving these intense temperatures with hydrogen for direct firing processes would improve the taste of whisky. In fact, hydrogen can burn even hotter than the methane traditionally used in the distilling process. Beam Suntory expects that achieving higher temperatures in direct firing will further enhance the rich character of its whiskies.