An electric tricycle charging station that converts waste cooking oil into fuel is now operating in Boracay Island with support from the Japanese government.
The project, located in Barangay Yapakin, Malay town in Aklan, is backed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in partnership with Japanese firm Kanazawa Engineering Systems Inc. (KES).
KES developed the facility, dubbed “Renergy Project,” building up from a pilot project that was done in 2018 with the design of recycling waste cooking oil as a substitute for diesel used in power generation sets.
“This new charging station can be a breakthrough to address the current environmental challenges in Boracay Island,” JICA’s chief representative Takema Sakamoto said in a statement.
“Consequently, Boracay can become a model and frontrunner for the entire Philippines to showcase as an environmentally modernized area,” Sakamoto added.
Through the Renergy project, waste cooking oil is collected from hotels and restaurants in the area and recycled to generate electricity using KES’ unique technology.
This is expected to help boost tourism by increasing the number of electric tricycles that can go to Puka Shell Beach in the northern part of the island, one of Boracay’s most popular beaches.
Before this project, only a few such tricycles could make the trip because the distance run depletes the battery. The charging station project is intended to address this predicament.
It is estimated that about 30,000 liters of waste cooking oil is generated every month in Boracay. The Renergy system provides local establishments a way to re-use their waste cooking and avoid the pollution of the island’s waterways.
According to JICA, KES’ Renergy System can run round the clock even during a blackout or a natural disaster.
The Renergy Project is part of JICA’s Partnership with the Private Sector Scheme, an initiative that addresses socioeconomic issues using Japanese innovations while also encouraging
Japanese companies to look into promising overseas markets such as the Philippines.