A US crypto mining company has visited a plant in Suffolk which has started production on a £7.5m contract for it.

Family-run EcoCooling, based at Symonds Business Park at Risby, near Bury St Edmunds, scooped the multimillion-dollar contract to supply coolers to a new cryptocurrency mining facility in the USA against stiff competition.

The British company is also launching a new product aimed at the agricultural industry.

Managing director Alan Beresford has more than 15 years’ experience in the cooling and ventilation industry and used his extensive knowledge to create several leading evaporative cooling products.

The firm, which employs 27 staff, describes itself as the largest manufacturer and distributor of fresh air direct evaporative coolers in the UK.

Mr Beresford said: “We already supply coolers to crypto mining and data centre facilities in Norway, Sweden and Iceland, but this new American contract worth £7.5m is about 10 times bigger than our usual orders.

“It is a tremendous achievement for us all at EcoCooling to have won the contract against worldwide competition. We have dedicated staff with the technical knowledge and expertise to fulfil this order.”

The company is upgrading its production facilities, and taking on extra staff.

The facility in the US will run around 57,000 miners, it said.

EcoCooling aims to create the most energy and carbon efficient cooling system for large spaces.

A standard unit covering a 250m sq area or spot cooling a 15m diameter zone can operate at a cost of less than 13p in electricity and 1p in water per hour even on the hottest day, it said, offering an energy saving of 90% on an equivalent refrigeration-based system.

An additional benefit of an evaporative cooling-based solution is the cost of installation, which is a fraction of that of refrigeration-based systems, it added.

“In terms of carbon footprint, an evaporative cooling unit would account for 1,749kg per year, compared to 17,495kg for the alternative. Efficiency is second to none and can help businesses achieve ambitious carbon reduction targets,” it said.

The Princess of Wales community Hospital in Ely installed an EcoCooling system, which aims to keepstaff and patients comfortable on hot and cold days, as well as providing fresh air to keep bacteria and virus counts down on the wards and public areas.