ScottishPower has formed a partnership with green infrastructure technology provider Storegga to build the Cromarty Hydrogen Project and help distillers decarbonize their production processes.
The project follows a feasibility study by ScottishPower and Storegga, undertaken in collaboration with distillers Diageo, Glenmorangie and Whyte & Macay; it is designed to deliver up to 20 tonnes of green hydrogen per day from 2024, with the potential to scale to 300MW.
The partnership will see the two companies develop, build and operate green hydrogen production plants across Scotland, but the initial project phases will be focused in the Cromarty Firth region (north of Inverness).
All of the major distillers aforementioned have operations in the Cromarty region; the plants are expected to displace existing fossil fuel sources and enable the supply of green hydrogen into the heating processes of distilleries.
ScottishPower Hydrogen Director Barry Carruthers said: “This is a really exciting milestone in our ambitions to support the growth of green hydrogen production across the country and the decarbonisation of heavy industry.
“We can now get to work on turning plans on paper into tangible and deliverable projects that will transform industry in the Highlands – making a long and lasting difference for people, businesses and communities.”
Storegga Head of Hydrogen Andrew Brown added: “Storegga has been working with the distilling sector on the energy transition since 2014. In 2019, the Scotch Whisky Association’s Pathway to Net Zero report identified that hydrogen would play a key role in enabling Net Zero for the distilling sector.
“Phase 1 of the Cromarty Hydrogen Project is expected to be the first of many as we develop a broader green hydrogen manufacturing capacity in Scotland this decade. Storegga is proud to be working with ScottishPower and the distillers on this groundbreaking project.”
