PRIO rolls out used cooking oil collection in Ílhavo
The energy company has installed 30 new collection points across the municipality, supporting the conversion of household cooking oil into biofuels and expanding its circular economy network in Portugal.
PRIO has installed 30 new used cooking oil collection containers in the municipality of Ílhavo, Portugal, as part of an initiative to increase the recovery of household waste oils for biofuel production. The project, developed in partnership with the Municipality of Ílhavo, expands PRIO Ecowaste's network, which now includes more than 500 collection points across around ten Portuguese municipalities.
The collected used cooking oil will be processed and transformed into biofuels at PRIO’s New Energies Complex in the Port of Aveiro. According to the company, one liter of used cooking oil can contaminate up to one million liters of water if improperly disposed of, while 1,000 liters of recovered oil can generate approximately 950 liters of biodiesel. Despite this potential, only about 10% of used cooking oil is currently recycled.
The initiative is linked to broader sustainability efforts in Ílhavo, whose municipal fleet already operates entirely on ECO Diesel, a fuel that incorporates 15% biofuel produced from used cooking oil. During the latest Codfish Festival, where PRIO participated as an official partner, 1,316 kg of used cooking oil were collected for recycling and conversion into biofuel.
“The installation of more collection containers in the municipality reinforces Ílhavo’s commitment to sustainability and the circular economy,” said Rui Dias, president of the Municipality of Ílhavo.
Carlos Baptista, Commercial Director at PRIO Ecowaste, said the project gives residents “the opportunity to deposit their used cooking oils, which will be transformed into biofuel,” helping reduce carbon emissions while supporting more sustainable road transport.
The new containers have been distributed across Ílhavo’s four parishes to improve accessibility for residents and encourage greater participation in recycling programs.
