PETALING JAYA: A Malaysian company has been collecting used cooking oil for the past seven years and turning it into biodiesel.
Arus Oil (My Protech Sdn Bhd) sets up drop-off points in various parts of the Klang Valley to collect used cooking oil and incentivise people to come forward to do so by paying RM3 per kg for their disposable oil.
For example, residents of SS14 in Subang Jaya, Selangor, have been disposing their used cooking oil this way since 2017.
Instead of clogging drains with the oil, they bring it to a drop-off point, where it is discarded into a collection drum and they get paid for it.
Arus Oil has also made it convenient for the public by creating an app in 2021 that enables customers to schedule used cooking oil collections via their mobile phones.
Arus Oil has collected 250 metric tonnes of used cooking oil from around the Klang Valley since the start of its pilot project in Subang Jaya.
The Arus Oil drop-off centre in Subang Jaya, Selangor.
“We visit homes to buy used cooking oil, paying customers directly through the app,” said Arus Oil co-founder and chief marketing officer Dr Chatichai Chong, 36. He runs the company with business partner Mohd Syazwan Abd Majid, 31.
Now, Arus Oil has a drop-off centre to collect used cooking oil from individuals and businesses.
Chong said the initiative is a major leap in environmental stewardship.
“Many households lack awareness of how to properly manage used cooking oil.
“This leads to health hazards from reusing the oil or environmental harm when it is poured down drains.
The men behind the sustainable initiative: Chong and Mohd Syazwan.
“This drop-off centre offers people a convenient and eco-friendly way to dispose of used cooking oil.
“Our new facility aims to educate and facilitate proper recycling, bridging this gap and promoting sustainable practices,” he added.
Located on Jalan Industri USJ 1/4 in Taman Perindustrian USJ 1, Subang Jaya, the drop-off centre operates from 10am to 6pm, Mondays to Saturdays.
“We accept vegetable-based oil. However, it must never be mixed with any fossil fuel,” said Chong.
He said the used cooking oil would undergo filtration to remove sediments, moisture and impurities.
Processed used cooking oil can be used to make candles.
The oil is then lab-tested before being sent for conversion into bio-diesel.
During the drop-off centre’s launch, visitors were taught how to make candles from processed used cooking oil, led by Lit & Lull candle shop owner Amy Ng.
“We source processed used cooking oil from Arus Oil for candle-making.
“This transforms discarded resources into something beautiful and purposeful,” the 32-year-old Ng said.
