Ecobreves – ARGENTINA: Quality Standards for Waste Oil Biodiesel

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

BUENOS AIRES, Feb 13 2012 (IPS) - Argentina’s National Institute of Industrial Technology (INTI) has developed standards that will enable the certification of small plants that produce biodiesel from used cooking oil. "There was no certification for biodiesel made from used vegetable oil, and many plants operated by small producers or municipalities are using it for their energy needs," INTI technician Matías Ribeiro told Tierramérica.

There has been growing interest from municipalities in the provinces of Buenos Aires and La Pampa, in central Argentina, and the southern province of Tierra del Fuego, in learning about the requirements of the voluntary standards that would serve to certify the quality of their operations.

The used cooking oil is collected from restaurants and used to produce biodiesel that is in turn used to fuel municipal vehicles, buses and farm vehicles, as well as electricity generators.