Consortium Awarded USD$3.5 M Funding - Team of challenger brands spanning North America and the UK join forces to decarbonize Scottish whisky distillery using revolutionary green hydrogen and heat combustion technology
- The project will see the inaugural deployment of Jericho Energy Ventures' innovative, zero-emission boiler solution (DCC™) with Remy Cointreau-owned Bruichladdich and Protium
- Project could act as the blueprint for North American brands accelerating ambitious decarbonization strategies
- Project team awarded USD $3.5 million from UK Government's Green Distilleries Competition
NEWTOWN, PA and VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / November 24, 2021 / Jericho Energy Ventures'(Jericho) (TSXV:JEV)(FSE:JLM0)(OTC PINK:JROOF), wholly owned subsidiary Hydrogen Technologies (HT), is setting new standards with the world's first zero-emission, closed-loop hydrogen boiler, as part of a revolutionary project with Scottish Whisky Distillery, Bruichladdich, and leading UK-based green hydrogen energy company, Protium, to help decarbonize the distillery's operations.
Led by Protium, the demonstration project will see Jericho's innovative boiler solution - the Dynamic Combustion Chamber* (DCC™) - which leverages best-in-class combustion technology to be installed to heat the stills used to create Bruichladdich's globally renowned Scotch, as well as their artisanal gin, The Botanist, thus removing a major contributor to the brand's overall carbon emissions.
This pilot project marks the first global deployment of the DCC™ following an in-depth feasibility study in early 2021 by Bruichladdich and Protium, the exclusive licensee for the DCC™ in the UK and Ireland. The UK Government has supported the project through its Green Distilleries Competition, with the project team awarded USD$3.5 million through the UK Government's Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Net Zero Innovation Portfolio.
Dubbed HyLaddie, the project represents a new era for decarbonization projects, marking one of the first cross-border green hydrogen projects with a team of challenger brands collaborating across the US, Canada, England and Scotland.
Commenting on the project, Brian Williamson, CEO of Jericho, said, "We are thrilled that the inaugural deployment of the DCC™ is with none-other than Remy Cointreau-owned Bruichladdich, one of the most prestigious and progressive distilleries, who shares our vision of forging a sustainable future. We look forward to working with Bruichladdich and the Protium teams to implement the ambitious decarbonization project with our game-changing zero-emission technology."
"Now that COP26 has come and gone, we expect to see an increase in large corporates and multi-nationals expediting their global decarbonization efforts. I'm really proud to partner with other challenger brands across various jurisdictions so that we can collectively pioneer change while benefitting from international expertise."
With 30% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions stemming from low, medium, and high-grade heat applications, the decarbonization of thermal operations plays a vital role in achieving global net-zero targets. Green hydrogen solutions enable hard-to-abate sectors, such as the food and beverage manufacturing industry, to reduce their environmental impact - the successful deployment of the DCC™ will provide an example for both commercial and industrial heat-intensive sectors to follow suit.
Douglas Taylor, CEO of Bruichladdich Distillery, comments, "Sustainability is in our DNA and is at the heart of everything we do. Leveraging Jericho's DCC™ technology will have an enormous impact on the success of HyLaddie - a project we are extremely excited about as it can totally transform our approach to sustainability. Many distilleries across Scotland are making serious steps forward in decarbonizing their energy requirements, and we believe that hydrogen has a future in the Scotch industry. We're thrilled to bring a team of experts from the UK and North America together to make our dream of being a net zero company a reality."
Also commenting on the project, Chris Jackson, CEO of Protium, said, "Protium is delighted to accelerate our work with Bruichladdich to decarbonize their distilling process, working with our partners Jericho Energy Ventures as well as Petrofac and ITP Energised."
"The drinks sector has been focused on decarbonization, with the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) targeting net zero emissions across the industry by 2040. Despite this focus, demonstrating viable technologies has been slow, so we believe that the successful deployment of the DCC™ will provide an important precedent for other industries to turn to when exploring options to decarbonize their thermal operations. There's an enormous industry in the US that could benefit from this technology, and I am excited to work with our partners Jericho Energy Ventures to demonstrate how this project could be a blueprint for others in North America to follow suit."
The announcement of the consortium's hydrogen demonstration project follows a string of decarbonization updates post-COP26 and represents a much-needed gear change in global decarbonization projects, notably with the recent signing of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill by the Biden Administration - a move which will designate $9.5 billion towards clean hydrogen programs1. Of that sum, $8 billion will be dedicated to at least four regional clean hydrogen hubs2, one of which will be dedicated to demonstrating hydrogen use in heating.
The successful demonstration of the DCC™ will open the door not just for other distilleries in the US embarking on their decarbonization journeys, but it will also pave the way for other operators across a variety of industries who are accelerating their net zero activities.
NOTES TO THE EDITOR
* The DCC™ leverages revolutionary technology and is the world's first zero-emission megawatt-scale, closed loop hydrogen boiler that generates high temperature steam, using only oxygen and hydrogen that is reacted in a vacuum. The DCC™ does not require a smokestack or any other energy dissipating exhaust, eliminating any emissions of CO2, NOx and SOx. The only by-product of the reaction is water that can be recycled.