Mura Technology’s HydroPRS: Turning All Plastic Waste into Virgin Material

Mura Technology is leading a globally scalable solution to convert every type of plastic waste into virgin‑grade material, dramatically reducing CO₂ emissions and driving a circular plastics economy.

ReNew ELP is constructing the world’s first commercial‑scale plant in Teeside, U.K., backed by the UK government and global partners, with commissioning slated for 2022.

The proprietary HydroPRS system employs a Catalytic Hydrothermal Reactor (Cat‑HTR), a technology owned by Licella Holdings Ltd., that breaks plastics using supercritical steam (water at high pressure and temperature). Supercritical steam acts as molecular scissors, cleaving long‑chain hydrocarbons into the chemicals and oils that originally formed the plastic, all within about 25 minutes.

Because the steam delivers energy from the inside, the process is highly efficient and inherently scalable – unlike conventional methods that heat plastic from the outside. The technology can be maintained at any scale.

HydroPRS can recycle every plastic type, including multi‑layer, flexible packaging often deemed “unrecyclable,” and has no limit on the number of recycling cycles. This capability could eliminate single‑use plastics and supply raw materials for a fully circular economy.

The Teeside plant will process 80,000 metric tonnes of plastic per year and will serve as the blueprint for a global rollout that aims for 1 million metric tonnes of capacity worldwide by 2025 – roughly half of the UK’s annual plastic‑packaging waste. Additional sites are planned in Germany, the U.S. and Asia.

Dr. Steve Mahon, CEO of Mura Technology, said, “We are at the tipping point of an environmental catastrophe – it’s time to act. HydroPRS offers a win‑win for the environment, economy and society, keeping plastic out of landfills and the ocean.”

Mura has secured several strategic partnerships to accelerate deployment: in January it signed an agreement with Houston‑based KBR Inc. to license the technology worldwide, and KBR has invested in the company; Igus GmbH has invested in the Teeside plant, and Wood has been appointed as the EPC contractor for the project.

The UK government has recognized advanced recycling as a key contributor to recycled‑plastic targets and has supported the technology in line with proposed plastic‑tax incentives. Rebecca Pow, DEFRA under‑secretary, praised the investment as a breakthrough.

Environmental advocacy groups back HydroPRS. Jo Ruxton, founder of Ocean Generation and producer of the Netflix documentary “A Plastic Ocean,” said, “More than eight million tonnes of plastic enter our oceans each year – technologies like this are essential to stopping that waste.”

Mura is in advanced talks with global brands and investors to fund and deploy HydroPRS, using the recovered raw ingredients to replace virgin plastic and meet consumer demand for sustainable action.

“The problem isn’t plastic, it’s where it ends up,” said Dr. Mahon. “We want to change the world’s perception of plastics from waste to valuable, endlessly reusable resource.”