The Inverclyde based Ardgowan Distillery, has announced that
it has broken ground on the first phase of its £20 million “cathedral of
whisky”.
The first build phase on the new zero-carbon whisky
distillery, which will be carried out by the Inverkeithing based Muir
construction – and expected to last 12 months, will see the completion of the
distillery’s main production elements, including core groundworks, steelwork and
distillation equipment.
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| Construction begins on new £20M Ardgowan Distillery |
The innovative distillery design uses low environmental impact composite cladding, timber and steel materials to create a modern Nordic long hall, symbolising resurrection and rising from the ashes of the former Ardgowan Distillery in Greenock, which was bombed during the 1941 Blitz.
The distillery has partnered with Heriot-Watt University and
engineers Briggs of Burton to develop technology to capture all of the CO2 in
its fermentation process and transform it into green biomethane - a technique
which has never been used in a Scotch whisky distillery before.
This first build phase represents the culmination of almost
7 years’ careful planning for the distillery founders, marking a huge milestone
in the ergonomic, energy efficient distillery and visitor experience, which
will create up to 47 local jobs and produce up to 1m litres of whisky per year.
Commenting on the news, Martin McAdam, Ardgowan CEO, said: “It’s
been almost seven years in the planning, spanning Brexit, a global pandemic,
and five Prime Ministers. But now, finally, we have started construction. Muir
have been integral in constructing some of the finest Scotch Whisky
distilleries open today and are at the forefront of several pioneering Scottish
sustainability projects. We welcome their expertise as we embark on the first
major phase of our state-of-the-art distillery.”
Having released a selection of its own bottlings, including its
award-winning Clydebuilt range, Ardgowan is due to start production on its own
whisky at the new distillery in 2024.
Posted by Steve Rush