Whisky distilleries across Speyside will be among industrial sites to benefit from a new green hydrogen energy facility planned for the region.
Around 100 high-skilled jobs will be created with the development of a new industrial fuel and energy site in Moray.
The Scottish Government is to provide £3.1 million in funding for the project, which is being led by Storegga, which will match fund the investment, totalling £6.2 million.
It complements a total of almost £7 million from the Scottish Government’s Hydrogen Innovation Scheme, which has supported 31 projects across the country since 2022.
The phased development by Storegga is expected to produce around 200MW of green hydrogen by 2032 -– the equivalent to the production of enough hydrogen to heat over 8,000 homes.
Once fully operational the new hub is expected to save around 190,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. This is the equivalent of a 35 per cent drop in the Scottish whisky sector’s 2018 baseline emissions or the same as taking around 135,000 cars from roads in Scotland.
Gillian Martin, acting energy secretary, said: “This Scottish Government funding will support the construction of a new hub in Speyside, creating job opportunities for a hundred people in the local area.
“The hub will also support decarbonisation of Scotland’s iconic whisky industry, which currently relies on energy intensive production techniques – by creating clean energy and heat used for distilling and fuel for transportation.
“There is significant potential for the development of green hydrogen production in Scotland, due to our capability to generate so much renewable energy from offshore wind – crucial to the process of making green hydrogen.
“And as we continue with our transition to net zero, green hydrogen will play an increasingly important role within industry as organisations further decarbonise their operations and support Scotland’s transition to net zero.”
Green hydrogen is made by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable energy, and can be used for fuel for transportation, commercial and industrial heat or stored to meet future demand.
The green hydrogen produced in Speyside will provide fuel and energy for over 40 industrial sites across the region including whisky distillers and distiller hauliers – supporting the decarbonation of the sector.