Mr. Ofer Vicus reports

ADURO CLEAN TECHNOLOGIES COLLABORATES WITH ECOCE TO ADVANCE RECYCLING OF FLEXIBLE PLASTIC PACKAGING IN MEXICO

Aduro Clean Technologies Inc. and ECOCE AC, a non-profit environmental civil association based in Mexico, have entered into a multiyear framework collaboration agreement to jointly evaluate Hydrochemolytic technology as a potential chemical recycling solution for flexible and mixed plastic packaging in Mexico, a large and particularly challenging waste stream that ECOCE has identified as a priority.

ECOCE is a non-profit environmental civil association created and sponsored by the food and beverage industry in Mexico. It administers Mexico's national private collective packaging management plan for postconsumer PET, HDPE, aluminum and other materials on behalf of its member companies. This industry-led plan functions as a producer responsibility scheme through which participating companies jointly organize and finance the collection and recycling of their postconsumer packaging. Through nationwide collection, education and take-back initiatives, ECOCE co-ordinates the recovery of postconsumer packaging and channels it into recycling systems across Mexico, a country of approximately 132 million people. Its membership includes many of Mexico's leading beverage and food groups, including global consumer brands. Recognized as a pioneer in PET recovery and recycling in the country, ECOCE is placing greater emphasis on the circularity of flexible plastic packaging by creating valuable circular destinations for these materials in support of the circularity commitments of its member companies.

Under this collaboration, ECOCE and Aduro are focused on evaluating the application of HCT on real postconsumer flexible plastic packaging from Mexico, including multilayer and mixed structures, sourced through ECOCE's postconsumer packaging collection and management systems. The collaboration contemplates that ECOCE would identify, characterize and supply representative material while Aduro would conduct a structured, multistage program of Hydrochemolytic testing at its development facilities, from laboratory through pilot scale, to help assess processability, yields, product quality and potential applications for the resulting liquid products.

The collaboration is intended to address one of the most challenging fractions in Mexico's waste stream: postconsumer flexible plastic packaging. Mexico generates close to 60 kilograms of plastic waste per person every year, adding an estimated six million to seven million tonnes of plastic waste annually. Within this total, flexible plastic packaging is a large and fast-growing category, with recent estimates indicating that around 1.5 million tonnes of this material are generated annually in Mexico, approximately 1.6 times the volume of PET beverage containers. Because these materials often combine multiple polymers, layers, inks and adhesives in thin formats, they rarely fit into existing collection and mechanical recycling systems, and a high proportion is still destined for incineration, landfill or leakage into the environment.

Hydrochemolytic technology is a patent-backed chemistry platform developed by Aduro that operates at moderate temperatures with catalysts to break down large hydrocarbon molecules into smaller, more valuable liquid products. In plastics applications, HCT is designed to convert mixed and contaminated waste streams, including multilayer and flexible plastic packaging that is difficult to manage mechanically, into liquid hydrocarbons suitable for further upgrading and use as petrochemical feedstocks, including in steam crackers. Recent independent pilot-scale steam-cracking trials have shown that a sample of Hydrochemolytic oil produced from plastics using HCT can be processed as produced, with little or no costly posttreatment, while delivering stable furnace operation and olefin yields comparable with conventional fossil feedstocks, providing key building blocks for the production of new plastics.

Aduro is advancing HCT through a structured scale-up program, with its next-generation process pilot plant nearing completion and active development under way for its demonstration-scale plant, including global site selection and long-lead equipment assessments.

Based on the results generated under the collaboration, ECOCE and Aduro intend to study potential business models and routes to market that can create value for ECOCE's associated members, waste collectors and downstream offtake partners. The findings are expected to guide future decisions about how HCT-based recycling solutions might be deployed in Mexico. Options under consideration could include HCT facilities that may be owned and operated by Aduro, ECOCE members or third parties under licence from Aduro, as well as the potential establishment of an Aduro presence in Mexico. Any such projects would be subject to separate definitive agreements and, where applicable, regulatory clearances, and would depend on the progress of the company's broader scale-up program.

The collaboration, structured as a multiyear, phased program, is expected to formally begin in January, 2026. At each stage, the partners will review the findings and determine the appropriate next steps, ensuring that progress toward potential HCT-based recycling solutions in Mexico is guided by data and aligned with the objectives of both organizations.

Even ahead of the formal start, early activities are already under way. This announcement coincides with Aduro's participation in the second Sustainable Flexible Packaging LATAM conference in Mexico City, where chief revenue officer Eric Appelman is scheduled to present the collaboration and the role of chemical recycling in handling films and flexibles on Dec. 3, 2025. Additionally, Aduro will present its technology and project plan to ECOCE's full membership on Dec. 15, 2025, in Guadalajara. In parallel, ECOCE leadership plans to visit the company's development facilities in London, Ont., in January, 2026, including a tour of a newly commissioned, fully continuous pilot plant that is expected to be instrumental in the collaboration.

"ECOCE sits at the centre of Mexico's packaging value chain, with international members that also have a global presence, and Aduro is focused on developing Hydrochemolytic technology as a new chemical recycling route for different applications and segments of the waste streams," said Ofer Vicus, chief executive officer of Aduro. "By working together with real Mexican waste, we aim to study and explore a clear, shared vision of where HCT can add value, how it might complement existing systems, and what that could mean for future recycling solutions for ECOCE's members and Mexico."

"ECOCE has more than two decades of experience co-ordinating the recovery and recycling of postconsumer packaging in Mexico, with notable progress in materials like PET," said Adrian Velasco, director of flexible plastic packaging at ECOCE. "Flexible plastic packaging is now one of the main priorities for our association and our member companies. Much of this material is still considered problematic because it does not fit easily into existing systems. Our collaboration with Aduro is intended to allow us to jointly evaluate an additional chemical recycling route tailored to Mexican conditions. Our objective is to generate the information and partnerships needed to transform flexible and multilayer packaging from a difficult waste stream into a resource that contributes to the circular economy, benefits local communities and strengthens the commitments of the brands that support ECOCE."

About Aduro Clean Technologies Inc.

Aduro Clean Technologies is a developer of patented water-based technologies to chemically recycle waste plastics; convert heavy crude and bitumen into lighter, more valuable oil; and transform renewable oils into higher-value fuels or renewable chemicals. The company's Hydrochemolytic technology relies on water as a critical agent in a chemistry platform that operates at relatively low temperatures and cost, a game-changing approach that converts low-value feedstocks into resources for the 21st century.

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