Highland Park Distillery and Visitor Centre has reopened after a modernisation project to future-proof the 227-year-old distillery, enhance efficiency and reduce its environmental impact. 

A series of upgrades is designed to significantly lower water and energy consumption, supporting the distillery’s ambition to reduce overall emissions by 50 per cent by 2030.

In addition to the upgrades, the distillery and visitor centre will offer a series of six guest experiences, each showcasing progressively rarer and exclusive whiskies. From introductory sessions for newcomers to the world of whisky to in-depth explorations for devoted enthusiasts, guests will have the opportunity to delve into the archives and savour Highland Park’s most exceptional craftsmanship and flavours.

At the heart of the environmental sustainability investments is a new heat recovery system, capturing heat from whisky distillation to be reused across the distillery operations, including in the process of drying the malted barley used to make Highland Park Single Malt Scotch Whisky. This will remove the burning of coke at the distillery, which is traditionally used in the malt drying process and is a major step in cutting direct operational emissions and increasing energy efficiency across the site.

It is estimated that the new heat recovery system will deliver a 20 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions (CO₂) at the distillery, saving more than 1000 tonnes of CO2e per year.

Paul Condron, Highland Park Global Brand Director, said: “At Highland Park Distillery we are trying to make our whisky as sustainably as possible, through finding ways of reducing energy usage, removing coke from our malting and reusing heat from distilling to dry our malt. Highland Park’s near-term goal is to reduce our overall emissions by 50 per cent by 2030, which in turn will support our parent company Edrington on its journey to Net Zero by 2045.”

Improvements across the distillery also include a £13 million mashhouse upgrade to drive further efficiencies of Highland Park’s use of water and energy across the whisky making process. Key equipment including the distillery’s mash tun, yeast preparation systems and washbacks have been modernised. Enhanced equipment design of the 12 washbacks has seen wood replaced with stainless-steel and cooling jackets which enable precise fermentation control, reduce water and chemical usage, and support future CO₂ capture capabilities.

Paul Condron continues: “The changes to our centuries-old distillery have been carefully managed, making sure nothing affects the distinctive taste we all know and love. Our whisky continues to be produced in exactly the same way, using the same raw materials, methods and Orkney heathered peat to create the distinctive flavour and character of Highland Park.”

Highland Park Distillery and Visitor Centre opens in March, offering a range of guest experiences. In the coming weeks, local businesses, suppliers, and members of Highland Park’s Inner Circle community in Orkney will be among the first to explore the distillery’s upgrades. Meanwhile, the flagship store in Kirkwall will continue to host a curated tasting experience. The modernisation of the site also includes improved accessibility, ensuring full wheelchair access throughout the entire distillery tour experience.

Graham Bruce, Visits and Retail Operations Manager at Highland Park, said: “We are excited to offer a warm welcome to guests to our Orkney island home. We have six new experiences for guests to enjoy at the Highland Park Distillery Visitor Centre, each include tastings of our award-winning whiskies.”

To learn more about Highland Park’s sustainability journey or to discover the new experiences on offer, please visit the Highland Park website: www.highlandparkwhisky.com

ENDS

Notes to Editors

About Highland Park
Highland Park has been distilled on the same site at Kirkwall, Orkney since 1798. Orkney has always been a world apart. Sitting in the North Sea, at roughly the same latitude as the southern tip of Greenland, it’s a place defined not just by its natural beauty, but also the creative, resourceful spirit of the people who live there.

At Highland Park, everything stems from this unique environment and community. In the more than 200 years since the distillery was founded, far from the mainland, and the mainstream, Highland Park continues to craft single malt whisky, according to its own rules.

Its distinctive smoky-sweet flavour comes from the unique island nature of Orkney, with long days of sunlight and wind so strong, that few trees grow. Instead, heather lines the landscape, which gives Highland Park its distinctive Orkney heathered peat.

For more information, please visit: www.highlandparkwhisky.com