Tomatin whisky distillery oil to gas conversion reduces fuel bills by 15%

In a move to significantly reduce fuel costs and carbon emissions, the Tomatin whisky distillery in the Highlands has converted from oil to liquid petroleum gas (LPG) fuel saving over 15% on energy bills.

The distillery, which produces over two million litres of whisky a year, is based in an off-grid location in the Monadhliath mountains. With the need to reduce both energy requirements and it’s carbon footprint, Tomatin initially introduced a biomass boiler – a fuel option previously unused in the Scottish distilling industry. However, Tomatin was still left with an inefficient, expensive and polluting 10MW oil boiler.

Graham Eunson, General Manager, Tomatin Distillery, said: “We needed a replacement for our oil boiler that would be cheaper to run, reduce our carbon footprint and be easier to maintain. The whisky industry is not keen on change, and we like to reduce risk as much as we can, so we spoke to colleagues in the industry who had already switched from oil to LPG.”

Flogas Britain managed the installation of the LPG system which was both installed and up and running within a week.

Since installing the LPG system, Tomatin has seen financial savings of over 15% on its fuel bills. Original estimates predicted a return on investment of between 12 months and two years, but the system is now expected to pay for itself in just one year. Tomatin is also on track to reduce its annual carbon emissions by 560 tonnes – a saving of almost 20%.

Eunson added: “Flogas were highly recommended, so it was an easy decision for us to work with them. Flogas managed the whole process from start to finish, and it was seamless.

“We’re seeing large savings and are already ahead of our return on investment schedule. In addition to the financial and carbon savings we’re making, maintenance has been substantially reduced. The oil boiler required daily attention, but beyond the statutory safety checks, the new LPG system has been maintenance free.”