City councillor floats idea of mini used-oil refinery

Roopnaraine Persaud, a councillor of the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC) has proposed that the council consider the establishment of a mini used oil re-refinery to bring in much needed revenue as well as preserving the environment.

This was disclosed by Mayor Patricia Chase-Green who shared the contents of a letter submitted by Persaud on Wednesday during the last statutory meeting of the year.

However, while at the time it seemed as though Persaud, through his letter was seeking permission to undertake the project as an individual, he has since indicated to the Stabroek News that his intention was to make a proposal to the M&CC to consider undertaking a project of this nature.

“I would like to inform you of the possibility of setting up a mini used oil refinery. This can produce hydraulic lubricant of 10 barrels per day so we can recycle used oil in the city. I discussed this in part with the Solid Waste Director, Mr Walter Narine, and I would like to, now, formally begin the process,” the letter stated.

“There is a facility like this in Tobago just commissioned. We should also be able to get funding through the Low Car-bon Development Strategy or Norwegian … Funds among others. There are also two ways of getting between $100-500 million in revenue by getting central government to implement a used oil disposal fee. The finished product can bring in between $35-50 million as a revenue base per year,” the letter added.