Diageo partners with Encirc on hydrogen powered furnace to change the face of UK glass manufacturing industry

15 Feb 2023 ESG

The hydrogen powered furnace will begin production in 2027 and will create the world’s first net zero glass bottles at scale. By 2030, the aim is for the furnace to produce up to 200 million net zero bottles of Smirnoff, Captain Morgan, Gordon’s and Tanqueray.

We announced at the end of 2022 that we’ll be partnering with Encirc, a leading glass manufacturer and co-packer, to create the world’s first net zero glass bottles at scale by 2030. The hope is the furnace will change the face of glass by reducing carbon emissions by 90%. This will be done by an energy mix of green electricity and low carbon hydrogen, with carbon capture technology capturing the remaining emissions by 2030. The furnace will be powered by hydrogen from the Vertex (HyNet) plant also in Cheshire, England.

By 2030, it’s expected the furnace will produce up to 200 million bottles of Smirnoff, Captain Morgan, Gordon’s and Tanqueray every year: half of Diageo’s European supply for these bottles.

Commenting, Ewan Andrew, President, Global Supply & Procurement and Chief Sustainability Officer at Diageo, said: “We are really excited to be a part of this world leading announcement which forms part of our commitment to halve our Scope 3 carbon emissions by 2030. All renewable energy options are important to us and we’d like to see Government and industry further accelerating the direct supply of green energy as a mainstream option. Ultimately, we look forward to a world where people can enjoy their favourite drinks from zero carbon glass bottles.”

The use of the zero-carbon furnace will contribute towards our commitments in our ESG action plan Spirit of Progress. We’ve committed by 2030 to halve our scope 3 emissions and producing net zero bottles at scale across Europe is a step towards achieving that goal.

Adrian Curry, Managing Director of Encirc said: “This will be a major step in our goal of producing net zero glass by 2030. With support from the Government and key partners, Encirc and Diageo believe it will be possible to have this first of its kind furnace up and running at the beginning of 2027.

“Glass is an incredible material being infinitely recyclable and chemically inert. It has been around since 3500 BC and has never been produced in this way. This is about protecting glass as a material by addressing the carbon challenge. The work we and Glass Futures undertake will be shared with the UK glass industry to ensure glass remains as the packing of choice for many thousands more years!”

Watch the video below to find out more: