Biodiesel pilot plant to be
set up by USEK and IPTEC

To recycle waste cooking oil and reduce emissions

The Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) and IPT Energy Center (IPTEC), with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Lebanon, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to install a pilot plant at USEK for the production of biodiesel from waste cooking oil late this year.

The project’s objective is to encourage and promote sustainable biodiesel production by collecting household oil in storage tanks at selected IPT gas stations and at the USEK university campus.

“The importance of this project is reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and providing an alternative fuel which is ecologically safer and cheaper than the conventional oil,” said Barbar Zeghondy, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at USEK.

The pilot plant will have a processing capacity of 1,000 liters of oil per day, yielding around 800 liters of biodiesel per day. The output 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 selected IPT gas stations for commercial use.

Zeghondy said that the project will be supported by awareness campaigns and incentives to encourage participation. 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 locally.

The Asher Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship will create the business model of this industry, so that startups adopt it, Zeghondy said.