Fans of Scotch whiskey can now sip on their drink with the satisfaction of knowing that the beverage they are consuming may have helped generate renewable energy, feed some animals and take a chunk out of carbon emissions.
According to a recent statement from The Scotch Whiskey Association (SWA), a new power plant in Speyside, Scotland will use Scotch whiskey distillery by-products to generate electricity and produce animal feed.
The SWA reports that a £60.5 million (around $98.5 million) combined heat and power plant which will run on biomass left over from whiskey production is now under construction.
The plant, which is believed to be the first of its kind in the world (though a whiskey byproducts biofuel project was underway last year), is expected to generate 7.2 megawatts of electricity, most of which will be fed into Scotland’s national grid.
It will also produce an animal feed in the form of pot ale syrup, the evaporated co-product from the first stage of whiskey distillation.
The project is expected to create around 100 jobs during its construction and will employ about 20 full-time workers once operational sometime in 2013.
Sláinte!
