Energy specialists in Inverness are helping to save lives by sending solar-powered fridges to developing countries.
Dulas Ltd, which is headquartered in Wales and operates a base in the Highlands, has been delivering the equipment to health organisation Gavi.
The group, which is supported by 25 countries including the UK, has helped immunise more than 760 million children against the likes of typhoid and polio since its formation in 2000.
As part of these efforts, fridges are required to store vaccines – and Dulas is one of just six firms in the world with the capability to manufacture versions which run on solar power.
Co-founder Guy Watson, who recently stepped down from the firm and now volunteers as a blood bike driver, said: “It’s so satisfying to turn up in a place that has nothing – no electricity, not a light bulb – and to leave there with a fridge holding vaccines and other vital medical supplies.
“I couldn’t even hazard a guess at the volume of vaccines that has gone through the fridges we produced, but it’s absolutely colossal and a lot of lives that have been saved.”
International Development Minister Wendy Morton said: “I am proud Dulas is at the forefront of solar-powered fridge technology and this British expertise is helping Gavi in its mission to vaccinate millions of children against deadly diseases.”
