A planning proposal has been submitted to build the first and lowest-carbon grain distillery in the Scottish Borders at a cost of £46 million (US$65m).
Jackson Distillers is behind the plans for the St Boswells Distillery at the Charlesfield Industrial Estate.
The distillery will make 20m litres of alcohol per year to meet growing demand for Scotch whisky blends, as well as Scottish grain neutral spirit for gin and vodka.
Jackson Distillers is working with Noble & Company to secure the £46m investment to build the distillery, which will be only the second of its kind to be built in Scotland in the last 25 years, the company said.
Trevor Jackson, founder and CEO of Jackson Distillers, said: “We are excited to bring forward this transformational opportunity for the Scottish Borders. The project will create 20 permanent high-value jobs and a further 200 jobs through the construction stage whilst providing a crucial ongoing contribution to the local rural economy.
“The distiller will play its part in helping Scotland meet its climate change ambitions, sending zero waste to landfill with sustainability at the forefront of its production practices.”
The site will be situated to take local cereals from the Tweed valley and process them ‘efficiently and sustainably’ using renewable energy.
Once spent, the cereals will then go the adjacent anaerobic digestion plant, converted into energy, and the remaining waste will then be used as soil conditioner for crops.
Water will come from an on-site bore hole and recycled to minimise the use of natural materials during production.
The Scottish Borders Council is expected to make a decision on the application in July.
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Author: Melita Kiely