The companies Nynas, MR and Omicron organised a two-day Seminar in Madrid which was attended by prominent national and international actors in the electrical distribution sector: electricity companies, equipment manufacturers and maintenance companies. SIGAUS participated in this meeting, with a presentation on the Circular Economy of Waste Oils used in Electrical Transformers.

The presentation began by recalling that the European Union is strongly committed to implementing the New Circular Economy Model, which has come to stay, and has implications in multiple economic areas. The speaker also highlighted that the use of industrial oils is a paradigmatic case of Circular Economy, since despite their danger when they become waste, they retain important properties that make it possible, after suitable treatment, to extract from them new raw materials and energy.

Extended Producer Responsibility, EPR

During his presentation, De Lecea highlighted how companies in the electricity sector are affected by the Extended Producer Responsibility regulations, as industrial oil is a fundamental component of transformers. In particular, the need was stressed that companies that import dielectric oils for ‘field’ filling of transformers, as well as those that import equipment with oil already within, comply with the legislation regarding management of used industrial oils.

In both cases, the law considers these companies responsible for placing these oils on the Spanish market, so they must comply with a series of obligations regarding financing of collection and treatment of the waste generated, including compliance with some ecological objectives, information to the Public Administrations, and drafting prevention plans. Tasks that, according to current legislation, can be met individually or collectively, through the so-called SCRAP (Collective Systems of Extended Producer Responsibility), which includes SIGAUS as the major actor in the field of used industrial oils.