Five-star hotel runs limousines on used cooking oil

For the first time in Singapore, a hotel has turned to eco friendly biofuels to run its fleet of limousines. The green initiative was started by The Westin Singapore and Alpha Biofuels - a local company that turns waste cooking oil into biodiesel.

The five-star hotel will use the biodiesel to power a pair of Jaguar sedans that are used to perform airport pick-up services.

So far, recycled cooking oil has only been used to power biodiesel generators and cranes in Singapore.

This eco effort was started when the hotel opened last November. The oil refining process will shift from Alpha Biofuels to the hotel when it gets its own micro refinery next month.

Each kilogramme of biodiesel produces 65 percent less harmful gases compared to an equivalent amount of diesel, hence reducing the hotel's carbon emissions. Expected to generate up to 7,800kg of waste cooking oil each year, the hotel will also save on the cost of oil disposal. 

According to a report by The Straits Times, this move, together with other of the hotel's green efforts such as using biodegradable packaging for room amenities and reducing electricity consumption, will help save up to 30 percent on operating costs.