Nissan LEAF Solves Distiller's Biowaste Self-sufficiency Problem

As we’ve previously stated, electric scooters do the job of transporting people in remote locations like islands just fine, especially in local conditions, yet electric cars don’t fulfill their promise yet. But what if you needed a EV to do roughly the same job as the scooter?

That’s where Nissan’s LEAF comes into focus, as the 100% electric vehicle provides the all-important last element in an innovative business owner’s attempts to become entirely self-sufficient on the remote Hebridean island of Islay.

The 130-year old Bruichladdich whiskey distillery has established a pioneering biowaste system, allowing it to generate its own electricity by using the waste products from the distilling process. Business owner Mark Reynier, started using the system in which electricity is generated by biogas formed by a process called anaerobic digestion.

The system has been producing electricity since the beginning of the year, and now Reynier has also taken delivery of a Nissan LEAF, so he can drive around completely carbon-free, charging his car using the electricity produced by the distillery.

“The LEAF is fantastic to drive. It was frustrating to be making such strides in being self-sufficient, when my car still needed the most expensive diesel in the UK from the mainland. The arrival of the LEAF has allowed me to be as truly self-sufficient as possible,” said Reynier, who says he is hugely impressed by the car.

“Pot ale, the watery waste product left over after distilling, is converted into biogas which powers a generator to produce electricity for the distillery. During the process, called anaerobic digestion, bespoke microbes digest the pot ale to produce large quantities of high-quality biogas,” Nissan says, describing the way Bruichladdich comes by its electricity.