Enterprise Car Rental to Recycle Motor Oil

Enterprise Holdings has formed a business alliance with Universal Lubricants that will create a closed loop recycling process for motor oil used in rental cars.

Enterprise operates the Alamo Rent A Car, Enterprise Rent-A-Car and National Car Rental brands.

Beginning at Enterprise’s airport service centers in five states, Universal Lubricants will collect the spent motor oil of Alamo, Enterprise and National vehicles and recycle it for use in Eco Ultra brand motor oil. That motor oil will then circle back into Enterprise cars and light trucks in those markets, thereby closing the loop.

The U.S. produces approximately 1.3 billion gallons of used oil each year, and only 10% of it is re-refined. The rest of the used oil is either improperly disposed of (damaging the environment) or burned as an industrial fuel and is gone forever.

"Too often business ventures are seen as diametrically opposed to environmental interests," said John Wesley, CEO of Universal Lubricants. "The collaboration between Universal Lubricants and Enterprise Rent-A-Car contests that very assumption, providing a shining example of the innovation and possibility that arises when a commitment to customer service fuses with formidable environmental stewardship."

Universal Lubricants collects used oil from the government and private business such as auto parts stores, dealerships, service stations, and oil change centers across the U.S. The company then transports that oil to a re-refinery located in Wichita, Kansas, where it undergoes a hydro-treating process to remove all of the water, fuel and solvents as well as metals, asphalt flux and other heavy contaminants. The purified Grade II base stock oil is then blended with additives to make American Petroleum Institute (API) certified Eco Ultra products.