Clarke Energy is part of the

Kohler Company Kohler Co., founded in 1873 by John Michael Kohler, is an American manufacturing company based in Kohler, Wisconsin. Kohler is best known for its plumbing products, but the company also manufactures furniture, cabinetry, tile, engines, and ...

and is a multinational specialist in the sale, engineering, installation and maintenance of power plants that use gas engines. Clarke Energy is an independent company with its global head offices located in Knowsley,

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

and is an authorised distributor and service partner for INNIO's

Jenbacher INNIO Jenbacher designs and manufactures gas engines and cogeneration modules in the Austrian town of Jenbach in Tyrol. It is part of the INNIO portfolio of products and is one of their gas engine technologies; the other being Waukesha Engines. J ...

and Waukesha gas engines. Clarke Energy has over 1,000 staff in seventeen countries worldwide including

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

, Australia,

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalaha ...

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

, Swaziland and Lesotho. The company maintains a portfolio of applications for both low-carbon power and renewable energy generation.

Applications and projects

Gas engines can be used in various gas-to-power applications including

natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...

combined heat and power (CHP) /

cogeneration Cogeneration or combined heat and power (CHP) is the use of a heat engine or power station to generate electricity and useful heat at the same time. Cogeneration is a more efficient use of fuel or heat, because otherwise- wasted heat from elec ...

biogas Biogas is a mixture of gases, primarily consisting of methane, carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide, produced from raw materials such as agricultural waste, manure, municipal waste, plant material, sewage, green waste and food waste. It is a ...

landfill gas Landfill gas is a mix of different gases created by the action of microorganisms within a landfill as they decompose organic waste, including for example, food waste and paper waste. Landfill gas is approximately forty to sixty percent methane ...

coal mine methane Coalbed methane (CBM or coal-bed methane), coalbed gas, coal seam gas (CSG), or coal-mine methane (CMM) is a form of natural gas extracted from coal beds. In recent decades it has become an important source of energy in United States, Canada, Au ...

, synthetic gas,

wood gas Wood gas is a fuel gas that can be used for furnaces, stoves, and vehicles. During the production process, biomass or related carbon-containing materials are gasified within the oxygen-limited environment of a wood gas generator to produce a c ...

and

associated petroleum gas Associated petroleum gas (APG), or associated gas, is a form of natural gas which is found with deposits of petroleum, either dissolved in the oil or as a free "gas cap" above the oil in the reservoir. The gas can be utilized in a number of ways ...

. In the UK Clarke Energy is a leading supplier of landfill gas generation equipment, in Australia for Coal Mine gas engines and in France for natural gas cogeneration units. The company has worked on pioneering projects including the supply of the first GE biogas engines into sub-Saharan Africa near Lake Naivasha in Kenya and pioneering the use of CNG as a fuel with Nestle Nigeria.

History

The company's current operations were established by Jim Clarke in 1989 and initially was a service provided for diesel engines. In 1995 Clarke Energy became distributor for Jenbacher Gas Engines. In 1998, from its original base in the UK Clarke Energy began to expand overseas. In 2002 GE acquired Jenbacher, the Austrian gas engine specialist company commencing Clarke Energy's status as an 'Authorized Distributor and Service provider' for GE. Clarke Energy helped develop some of the first projects as part of GE's Ecomagination initiative including a biogas projects in Punjab, India, and coal gas plants in Australia. Clarke Energy was acquired by US-based Kohler Co. in 2017.

Key events

*1989 - Clarke Energy Established as an engine service company *1995 - Clarke Energy nominated as distributor for Jenbacher AG gas engine products in UK *1998 - Awarded distribution rights for Jenbacher in Australia, New Zealand and Nigeria *2003 - GE acquires Jenbacher AG. Clarke Energy acquires Cogen India, awarded distribution rights for Jenbacher in India *2004 - Clarke Energy acquires Jenbacher France, awarded distribution rights for France. *2005 - Clarke Energy awarded distribution rights for Jenbacher in Ireland. Previous distributor's contract cancelled. *2008 - Clarke Energy awarded distribution rights for Jenbacher in Tunisia *2011 - Clarke Energy awarded distribution rights for Jenbacher in Algeria *2012 - Clarke Energy awarded distribution rights for Jenbacher in Tanzania *2013 - Clarke Energy acquires Orient Energy Systems Bangladesh, Agaricus Trading and GE's South African Jenbacher gas engine service business. Awarded distribution rights for Bangladesh, South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique *2017 - Clarke Energy is acquired by Kohler Co.

Affiliations and achievements

Clarke Energy is a member of the Combined Heat and Power Association, the

Renewable Energy Association The Association for Renewable Energy and Clean Technology, previously known as Renewable Energy Association (REA), is a renewable energy and clean technology trade association in the UK encompassing all of renewables industry in the United K ...

and a founding member of

Lord Redesdale Baron Redesdale, of Redesdale in the County of Northumberland, is a title that has been created twice, both times in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was firstly created in 1802 for lawyer and politician Sir John Mitford (later Freeman-Mi ...

Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association The Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA), formerly the Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association, is a United Kingdom-based trade association for the anaerobic digestion and associated industries. ADBA was founded in Septemb ...

Clarke Energy is also a multiple award winner of the British Safety Council's International Safety Award. Clarke Energy was named 'Business of the Year 2012' in the Knowsley Business Awards. In 2012

ECI Partners ECI Partners is a growth focused private equity group based in the UK and the US, first established by the Bank of England in 1976. ECI typically invests up to £100m of equity (as part of an initial transaction) in businesses valued at up to ...

acquired a minority stake in Clarke Energy. In 2013 the company was awarded 'Export Champion' status by UK Trade and Investment. In 2014 the company was announced as a winner of the

Queen's Award for Enterprise The Queen's Awards for Enterprise is an awards programme for British businesses and other organizations who excel at international trade, innovation, sustainable development or promoting opportunity (through social mobility). They are the highest ...

(International Trade) for having achieved 6 years' sustained growth. The company also won the 2014 British Renewable Energy Award for Innovation, and 'Business of the Year >250 employees' in the (Liverpool City Region) Regional Business Awards. The company was also a finalist in the British Renewable Energy Awards 2013 & 2014 and the Energy Awards 2013Energy Awards Shortlist
www.theenergyawards.com It was awarded The Queen's Award for Enterprise: International Trade (Export) (2014).

References

{{Reflist, 26em Companies based in Merseyside Electrical engineering companies of the United Kingdom Engineering companies of the United Kingdom Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley Non-renewable resource companies established in 1989 Privately held companies of the United Kingdom Kohler Company British subsidiaries of foreign companies 2017 mergers and acquisitions