Celtic Renewables’ Welcomes Deputy First Minister at Scotland’s First Biorefinery

Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes toured Scotland’s first biorefinery as it reached a milestone in its drive to commercialise ground breaking technology. Celtic Renewables has recently released the first tanker load of green chemicals from its Grangemouth plant, marking the beginning of regular shipments.

The company takes by-products and waste from the food, drink and agriculture industries – including by-products from whisky distillation – and turns them into high-value green chemicals, bioacetone and biobutanol.

Its patented technology will reduce dependence on fossil fuels and cut the carbon footprint of everyday products, from medicines to cosmetics.

Celtic Renewables began as a spin-out from Edinburgh Napier University and now flies the flag for Scottish innovation with its full industrial scale commercial demonstrator plant in Grangemouth. This is powering the way to scale-up and commercialise the technology globally.

The plant was made possible through £60 million public and private sector investment, a third of which has come from Scottish Enterprise.

Mark Simmers, CEO of Celtic Renewables, said: “What we have in Grangemouth represents almost two decades of dedication and determination, supported by forward-thinking investors.

“Scottish Enterprise first backed us 16 years ago when we were conducting lab-scale research and has continued to provide support as we have grown and broken new ground. It shows real vision and belief in our potential.

“We are grateful to the Scottish Government for its commitment to encouraging innovation and supporting scale-up businesses like ours that are working towards a greener future. As Scotland works towards its 2045 net zero target we are helping that transition to a net zero, nature positive world through defossilisation.”

Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes said: “Celtic Renewables is a great example of the talent, energy and commitment which will ensure Scotland plays an important global role in reaching net zero targets and demonstrating how the path to net zero is a means of creating wealth and prosperity for communities.

“The Scottish Government published its Green Industrial Strategy because we recognised the importance of using this country’s abundant natural resources to deliver economic growth, create jobs and improve lives.

“In partnership with industry, community and workforce representatives across the Grangemouth Future Industry Board, we are working to unlock the significant opportunities for Grangemouth’s transition to net zero – and it’s great to see a demonstration from Celtic Renewables on how that is being achieved.”

Adrian Gillespie, Chief Executive of Scottish Enterprise, said: “Celtic Renewables is a fantastic example of a home-grown success story that has gone from pioneering university research team to an exporting business planning its next stage of growth. Scottish Enterprise continues to support the company’s innovative approach to green chemicals production as it looks to the future.

“Industrial biotechnology is an industry in which Scotland has global strengths. By backing the bold ambitions of companies like Celtic Renewables we aim to transform Scotland’s economy, creating good quality, higher paid jobs across the country.”

A cross-party House of Lords Science and Technology Committee report has highlighted the need for urgent action to turbocharge investment in engineering biology and support scale-up companies in biotechnology.

Celtic Renewables is attracting a lot of interest now that regular shipments of green chemicals are leaving the Grangemouth plant – strengthening the company’s determination to scale-up production and deploy its technology worldwide.