Planned Scotch Whisky Distillery Projects expected from 2025/26 and beyond

There are a number of new distilleries looking to produce Single Malt Scotch Whisky that have broken ground and are expected to be completed in 2025/26 – thanks from Inside the Cask to Graham Fraser for allowing us to use his list as seen on Facebook:

• Ardgowan Distillery (Lowlands) – Inverkip, Inverclyde (West of Glasgow, near the Firth of Clyde)
  • Founded: Originally planned in 2017, major construction began in 2023, being completed in 2025.
  • Ownership: Ardgowan Distillery Ltd. (backed by private investors).

• Balmaud Distillery (Speyside) – Fintray near Turriff, Speyside
  • Founded: Announced in 2023, construction was expected to begin in 2024. Planned to be launched from Summer 2025, not yet operational.
  • Ownership: Independent project by a private consortium.

• Ben Cumhaill Distillery (Lowlands) – near Dumfries
  • The name comes from an amalgamation of the names of the Irish giant Fionn mac Cumhaill and Scottish giant Benandonner that fought across the Irish sea creating the Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland.
  • Founded: Announced in 2022, and now nearing completion.
  • Ownership: Jeff and Jessica Simpson

• The Bothy Distillery (Highlands) – Glen Prosen, near Cairngorms National Park on land managed by Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS)
  • Founded: Announced in 2024, and expected to produce from 2025. The distillery is expected to produce around 300 barrels annually, with the flagship single malt planned for a 12-year maturation period.
  • Ownership: Bothy Trading with investment by Dark Blue Property Holdings, i.e. Dundee FC owners Tim Keyes and John Nelms, and fellow American John Neace

• Castletown Mill Distillery (Highlands) – Castletown, Caithness (Far North of Scotland)
  • Status: Planned / Under Development with expected opening in 2025 or later – to produce Stannergill Whisky brand
  • Owned By: Dunnet Bay Distillers (known for Rock Rose Gin)

• Eden Mill Distillery (Lowlands) – The University of St Andrews Eden Campus, St. Andrews, Fife
  • Status: New distillery under construction and opening in 2025; whisky already in production at a temporary site.
  • Owned By: Eden Mill Distillery & Brewery (backed by private investment, including Scottish Enterprise funding)

• Isle of Barra Distillery (Highlands) – Isle of Barra, Outer Hebrides
  • Status: Under construction, with whisky production expected to begin from Q.4 2026
  • Owned By: Michael and Katie Morrison via Isle of Barra Distillers (Independent, family-run company)

• Kythe Distillery (Highlands) – Hills of Bendochy Farm, Perthshire
  • Status: initially conceived back in 2014, construction of the distillery commenced in 2024, this phase is due to be completed in early 2025. Expected to finally begin distilling later in 2025.
  • Owned By: Kythe Distillery Co. Ltd, including Angus MacRaild of independent bottler Decadent Drinks

• Laggan Bay Distillery (Islay) – Glenegedale, near Laggan Bay, on the island of Islay
  • Status: under construction and expected to be completed in 2025.
  • Owned By: a partnership between Ian Macleod Distillers and The Islay Boys.

• Levenbank Distillery (Lowlands) – Dumbarton, near the banks of the River Leven
  • Status: started production from March 2025.
  • Owned By: from the same team behind Loch Lomond Brewery, owned by Fiona and Euan MacEachern. 

• Portintruan Distillery (Islay) – located just outside the town of Port Ellen, on the island of Islay
  • Status: delayed in late 2024 due to ISG construction firm going into administration, expected to open in 2025
  • Owned By: Founded by the team behind Elixir Distillers (Sukhinder and Rajbir Singh),
  • Portintruan (pronounced “Port-nah-truan”) aims to produce both peated and unpeated whiskies, along with experimental styles.

• Witchburn Distillery (Campbeltown) – located between Campbeltown Airport and Machrihanish Village
  • Status: final planning application approved in 2023, expected to start production 2025.
  • Owned By: independent bottlers Brave New Spirits.

There are some additional distillery projects in Scotland that have been announced but with no specific date or progress to date shared:

• Bon Accord Distillery (Highlands) – planning application for the distillery on Greyhope Road in Aberdeen, on the site of the Bon Accord Drinks factory, has been already approved in early 2025.
• Clutha Distillery (Lowlands) – is an upcoming whisky distillery planned by independent bottlers Douglas Laing for Glasgow. The name “Clutha” comes from the Gaelic word for the River Clyde, which has historically been central to Glasgow’s whisky trade. The planning application for Pacific Quay was withdrawn on November 9, 2022 and there has been no update since then.
• Dallas Dhu Distillery (Speyside) Historic Environment Scotland, in partnership with independent bottler Aceo, plans to reopen the historic Dallas Dhu Distillery near Forres. The distillery, which ceased production in 1983, is set to resume whisky production and become a modern visitor attraction, though a specific reopening date has yet to be announced.
• Dál Riata Distillery (Campbeltown) – Dál Riata will be an in-town distillery on Campbeltown’s harborfront, with plans to build along Kinloch Road on the banks of Campbeltown Loch​. The project is led by entrepreneur Iain Croucher (founder of independent bottler North Star Spirits) and partner Ronnie Grant.
• Dornoch South/ Struie Distillery (Highlands) – The Thompson brothers, Simon and Phil, are expanding their whisky endeavours with a new distillery project in Dornoch, Scotland. Building upon the success of their original Dornoch Distillery, established in 2016 within a converted Victorian fire station, this new facility aims to significantly increase production while maintaining their commitment to traditional whisky-making techniques.

• Drummygar Distillery (Highlands) – near Arbroath, Angus (Eastern Scotland). Status: Under Development / Planned. Drummygar Distillery Ltd is a recently established company in Scotland, incorporated on August 7, 2023.

• Duke Street Distillery (Lowlands) – Coldstream, Borders.  R&B Distillers (of Raasay and Machrihanish) have long-term plans for a micro grain distillery in Coldstream, in the Scottish Borders.

• Eydent Distillers (Lowlands) is a forthcoming whisky distillery planned for East Lothian, Scotland, spearheaded by Dissident Spirits Limited. Founded by Ollie Salvesen and Jack Mayo, the company aims to establish a new whisky distillery near Ormiston, East Lothian, on former agricultural land acquired for this purpose.
• Ferintosh Distillery (Highlands) is a new whisky distillery planned for Ferintosh, a historic whisky-making area on the Black Isle, Scotland. In the late 1600s, the Forbes family had a tax-free licence to distill whisky there, making Ferintosh whisky incredibly popular. The privilege was revoked in 1784, leading to the end of legal whisky production in Ferintosh.

• Gartbreck Distillery (Islay) – Gartbreck Farm is a picturesque coastal farm west of Bowmore, facing Bruichladdich across Loch Indaal​. Construction timelines are not yet confirmed by Chivas Brothers (Pernod Ricard).
• Grahamslaw Distillery (Lowlands) is a proposed eco-friendly single malt whisky distillery to be established at Grahamslaw Farm, near Kelso in the Scottish Borders. The initiative is led by businesswoman Sarah Lang and a team of whisky experts, including Colin Scott, former master blender at Chivas Brothers.
• Inveraray Castle Distillery (Highlands) – based at the historic seat of the Duke of Argyll and Clan Campbell. This initiative is a collaboration between Argyll Estates and Stock Spirits Group, the owner of the Clan Campbell whisky brand.

• Inverurie Distillery (Highlands) – this new ‘single estate’ distillery will be set on a building at risk, and (subject to planning and listed building approval) its future will be secured by converting it into a craft distillery with minimal external changes. The plan is for barley to be grown on site, with floor maltings being used, and spirit production and maturation to take place on site. The estate has many opportunities for micro generation and biomass, so much of the energy will be produced on site.

• Jedhart Distillery/ Mossburn Distillery (Lowlands) – Jedburgh. Mossburn Distillers, part of Dutch drinks firm Marussia Beverages BV, led proposals to build a grain and malt whisky plant, visitor centre and 200-seater restaurant close to the former Jedforest Hotel.
  • Phase One: Construction of a smaller craft distillery, Jedhart Distillery, designed to educate visitors on the craft of spirit making;
  • Phase Two: Development of the larger Mossburn Distillery, featuring four copper stills and 21 fermentation tanks, with a production capacity of up to 25 million litres of spirit annually.

• Knockhill Distillery (Lowlands) is an emerging spirits production facility located at Din Moss Farm, near Dunfermline in West Fife, Scotland. This family-run venture aims to diversify traditional farming operations by introducing whisky, gin, and vodka production.

• The Machrihanish Distillery (Campbeltown) – It will be located at Dhurrie Farm near Campbeltown Airport (Machrihanish), making it Campbeltown’s first farm-to-bottle distillery in over 140 years. The project has been financed and developed by R&B Distillers, an independent company co-founded by Alasdair Day and Bill Dobbie.

• Midfearn Distillery (Highlands) is a planned malt whisky distillery set to be constructed on the Midfearn Estate at Easter Fearn, circa three miles southeast of Ardgay in the Scottish Highlands. The Midfearn Distillery Company Ltd submitted a planning application to the Highland Council in late 2021 and the Midfearn Estate has been under the stewardship of the Brooke family since 1893.

• Midhope Castle Distillery (Lowlands) is a whisky distillery planned for West Lothian, Scotland, near Edinburgh. The distillery is named after Midhope Castle, a 16th-century tower house best known as Lallybroch from the TV series Outlander.

• Speyside Distillery II (Speyside) – the owners of Speyside Distillers (Speyside Distillery) are planning a new distillery in Speyside. No more information available currently.

• Wolfcraig Distillery (Highlands) – Stirling, although site still to be confirmed as of 2025. Wolfcraig’s founders include the late Michael Lunn (former Whyte & Mackay chairman), his son Jamie Lunn, and master blenders Richard Paterson OBE and Ian Macmillan.​ The project has faced repeated setbacks with Stirling Council rejecting Wolfcraig’s planning application twice due to concerns about the scale and its impact on the landscape.