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Chivas
Brothers has unveiled a £88 million
investment into their Aberlour and
Miltonduff distilleries in Speyside.
Chivas Brothers has unveiled a £88
million investment into their Aberlour
and Miltonduff distilleries in Speyside.
The investment will go into upgrading
sustainable distillation technologies at
the Speyside distilleries along with
significant production capacity
expansions to meet the growing global
demand for Scotch.
The distillery expansions will grow
Chivas Brothers’ total production by 14
million litres of alcohol per annum. The
investment is further confirmation of
Chivas Brothers’ commitment to Scotland
and a testament to the growing global
demand for Scotch whisky which has seen
exports increase across all regions,
with market gains in Latin America,
Middle East, Africa and Asia. In its
Half Year results in February, Chivas
Brothers announced a net sales increase
of +23%, confirming the company’s
recovery to beyond pre-Covid levels.
The distillery expansions will also
serve to accelerate Chivas Brothers’
ambitious goal of reaching carbon
neutral distillation by 2026 with the
installation of new bio plants and
high-efficiency Mechanical Vapour
Recompression (MVR) fan technology for
pot still distillation across both
sites. This mechanism enables a major
energy recovery by compressing the
vapour which then rises in temperature
and is sent back to heat the stills
during the distillation process. Last
year, the company announced plans to
roll out MVR technology across all
viable sites in its distillery portfolio
by 2026 following a groundbreaking pilot
study at its Glentauchers distillery
which resulted in energy reductions of
90% on a single pot still there.
Jean-Etienne Gourgues, Chairman and CEO
of Chivas Brothers said: “Scotch has
demonstrated its resilience as a
category over the past few challenging
years and in the process has opened new
avenues for growth. This expansion will
allow us to increase our volume to
capitalise on the increased demand and
interest in Scotch, but also supports
our drive to reduce emissions in line
with our sustainability ambitions. We’re
once again betting big on the future of
Scotch so we can bring in new consumers
to the category and continue to shape a
sustainable future of whisky."
The Aberlour distillery, which has been
producing whisky since 1879 will see its
production capacity double to 7.8
million litres of alcohol per annum.
This additional capacity will support
the accelerating global demand for the
cult favourite Scotch which continues to
be the best-selling single malt whisky
in France and has made significant gains
across Asia. The distillery will also
undergo a significant facelift with an
upgraded visitor centre which will draw
more whisky fans to the area and boost
local tourism. A new still house will be
equipped with large windows providing
visitors with views into the nearby
woods and the River Spey; the water
source for the spirit.
Miltonduff’s expansion will consist of a
brand new state-of-the-art sustainable
distillery built next to the existing
facility. The distillery, which will
include a bio plant and evaporator, will
add 10 million litres of alcohol per
annum to the total production capacity.
Miltonduff single malt is one of the
foundations of Ballantine’s blends and
is a key component of other blended
whiskies in the Chivas Brothers
portfolio. This increased capacity will
further accelerate Ballantine’s pace of
growth which in HY22 results saw global
sales rise by +29%, fuelled by a range
of new expressions.
Secretary of State for International
Trade, Anne-Marie Trevelyan MP, said:
"Scotch Whisky is a UK exporting success
story and this excellent news will see
some of the best products made in
Scotland, sold to the World - supporting
jobs and economic growth and helping us
to level up the country.
"It’s great to see Chivas Brothers adopt
new ground-breaking energy efficient
technology, helping deliver the
Government’s Net Zero strategy, and
maximising export opportunities through
green UK innovation."
Both sites are expected to be operating
at full production capacity by mid-2025.
You will find Aberlour and Miltonduff
single malts available from specialist online whisky retailers such
as
The Whisky Exchange,
Hard To Find Whisky
and
Master of Malt
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