Carillion Calls in the Frying Squad For Biofuel Vehicle Trial at Catterick Garrison

WOLVERHAMPTON, UNITED KINGDOM – June 26, 2009: Carillion has launched an innovative six-month trial to recycle waste cooking oil into vehicle fuel at its Regional Prime Contract on Catterick Garrison.

The project, set up by Rupert Webster and Nigel George of Carillion Planned Maintenance and supported by Carillion Enterprise and Defence Estates, converts used chip fat from the site’s 38 canteens into fuel to run a diesel-engined Peugeot Expert van. If the trial proves successful, it could cut annual fuel costs by around £2,500.

Dubbed ‘The Frying Squad’, Rupert and his team saw an opportunity to cut emissions, reduce fuel costs and recycle a waste product, all of which complement Carillion’s own core values.

The company’s long-term commitment to sustainability recently resulted in a second consecutive appearance in the Sunday Times list of Best Green Companies 2009.

The project uses a Green Fuel FuelPod™ to convert the cooking oil and added ethanol into 40-litres of fuel, with no waste product, in around eight hours. The Renewable Fuel Agency advises that used cooking oil typically offers a lifecycle greenhouse gas saving of 85% compared with normal diesel road fuel.

“We wanted to play our part in reducing emissions at Catterick and did a lot of investigation into electric vehicles, but when we started to look at using waste oil, the benefits were immediately obvious,” said Rupert.

“The rig we’ve now got on site enables us to produce 40 litres of biofuel per week, which is enough to run the van, and we’ll be analysing the cost benefits at the end of the six-month trial.”

The team is now on its sixth tank and, while results won’t be analysed in detail until the end of the trial, drivers say the new fuel hasn’t affected vehicle performance and could even be enhancing fuel economy.

“Once the initial trial has been successfully completed, the next phase will be to roll it out across the fleet,” added Rupert.

“The Commanding Officer here already runs a hybrid vehicle and since seeing our efforts is very keen to follow our progress. He believes the benefits could play a vital role in helping to meet Ministry of Defence targets to reduce emissions by around 20% by 2010.”