The Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) and IPT Energy Center (IPTEC), with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Lebanon, signed an MOU to install a pilot plant for the production of biodiesel from Waste Cooking Oil (WCO), on Monday July 16, 2018 at USEK campus in Kaslik, in the presence of USEK President Father Professor Georges Hobeika, IPTEC President Dr. Toni Issa, and the Energy and Environment Programme Manager at UNDP Ms. Jihan Seoud.
The main objective of this project is to encourage and promote sustainable biodiesel production from WCO by collecting household WCO in storage tanks available at key IPT gas stations and at the USEK university campus, and processing it into biodiesel in a pilot plant installed at the USEK campus.
The quantity of biodiesel produced will be equally shared between USEK and IPTEC. USEK’s share will be mixed with the green diesel currently used in the university generators, while IPTEC’s share will be sold at selective IPT gas stations for commercial use.
The major outputs of this project are to offer biodiesel as an alternative fuel with the same performance as that of conventional diesel, that is ecologically safer and cheaper, raise public awareness about the importance of WCO recycling, reduce the greenhouse gas emissions, upscale the collection, disposal and reuse of waste cooking oil as an alternative fuel, set the technical parameters and specifications for biodiesel from WCO, and promote its use as a clean source of fuel in all sectors while abiding by all national regulations and guidelines in coordination with the UNDP and specialized public institutions.
This project will be supported by awareness campaigns and incentives to encourage participation. It follows quality standards and will be assessed for its replicability at the national level in coordination and with the support of the UNDP. Moreover, USEK and IPTEC, with the support of the UNDP and in coordination with concerned public institutions, will lobby for and support the regularization of the use of Biodiesel in Lebanon.