Swachh India | Indian Oil Corporation To Recycle 100 Million PET Bottles Annually To Make Eco-Friendly Uniforms

Feb 06,2023

In a push to decarbonise the economy, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the nation’s largest oil firm, will recycle 100 million discarded mineral water, cold drink and other PET bottles annually to make eco-friendly uniforms for staff that man its petrol pumps and LPG distributor agencies. The firm also rolled out indoor cooking stoves that can be run on both solar power and auxiliary energy sources to offer households a cheaper and environment-friendly cooking solution.

The double burner Solar Cooktop can provide a green, clean, effective and permanent solution for the cooking needs of the families, he said.

Mr Puri also said that the “Unbottled” initiative, being launched today, is the largest initiative in the world to reuse and recycle 100 million PET bottles per year. He said,

Mr Puri also said that the “Unbottled” initiative, being launched today, is the largest initiative in the world to reuse and recycle 100 million PET bottles per year. He said,

PET bottles will be converted into cloth for the front-line workers of Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs), non-combat uniforms for Armed Forces and other Institutions and Retail sales.

IOC, which meets as much as half of the nation’s fuel needs, has already committed to a net-zero emission target by 2046 and is now venturing into recycling PET bottles.

Empty PET packaging discarded by the consumer after use becomes PET waste. IOC will deploy an agency to collect such bottles – 100 million annually – and convert them into yarn to weave or knit fabric. This will then be supplied to a textile company for manufacturing uniforms for IOC’s petrol pump attendants and LPG gas agency staff.

IOC is the first Indian firm to directly venture into the recycling of PET bottles.

Each set of uniforms will support the recycling of around 28 used PET bottles.

IOC is taking this initiative further through ‘Unbottled’ – a brand for sustainable garments launched for merchandise made from recycled polyester. Under this brand, IOC targets to meet the requirement of uniforms for the customer attendants of other oil marketing companies, non-combat uniforms for the Army, uniforms/ dresses for institutions and sales to retail customers, according to an official statement.

The dress materials for these uniforms have been extracted from recycled polyester derived from the processing of used and discarded PET bottles. This initiative would support recycling about 405 tonnes of PET bottles, equivalent to offsetting over 20 million bottles yearly.

The cooking system, unveiled by the Prime Minister, is designed to work indoors. A solar panel on the rooftop provides the energy needed for cooking. And when the sun isn’t there, it uses auxiliary energy such as LPG or piped natural gas, making it a reliable cooking solution for India.