Chicago, Dec. 15, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global advanced recycling market was valued at US$ 2.8 billion in 2025 and is expected to reach US$ 10.2 billion by 2035, growing at a CAGR of 13.9% from 2026–2035.
Regulatory pressures have fundamentally altered the profitability landscape for the advanced recycling market in 2025. The Global Plastics Treaty negotiations, known as INC-5, convened 175 nations in late 2024 to enforce a transition away from single-use plastics. These materials currently comprise 40% of EU plastic use, creating an urgent need for alternative processing methods. Global plastic waste generation is estimated at 460 million tons in the 2025 context, yet effective recycling rates remain below 10%. Such a massive gap validates the push for new infrastructure, as voluntary commitments are no longer sufficient to address these volumes.
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Compliance became a financial reality when the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation officially entered into force on 11 February 2025. It mandates a 30% recycled content target for contact-sensitive PET packaging by 2030, driving immediate procurement strategies. Furthermore, non-PET contact-sensitive packaging faces a 10% recycled content mandatory minimum. The UK Plastic Packaging Tax subsequently increased to GBP 223.69 per ton effective April 1, 2025. This tax applies to packaging containing less than 30% recycled plastic, rising from the previous GBP 217.85 per ton. These legislative levers create an undeniable demand floor for the advanced recycling market.
Key Findings in Advanced Recycling Market
| Market Forecast (2035) | US$ 10.2 billion |
| CAGR | 13.9% |
| Largest Region (2025) | North America (34.33%) |
| By Technology | Pyrolysis Technology (41%) |
| By Feedstock | Polyethylene (PE) feedstock |
| By Application | Packaging (Rigid & Flexible) Industry (37.88%) |
| By Product | Recycled feedstock oils & fuels (pyrolysis oil) (32.50%) |
| Top Drivers |
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| Top Trends |
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| Top Challenges |
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ExxonMobil Investments Prove Profitability Potential In Large Scale Thermal Conversion
ExxonMobil has emerged as a dominant capital force within the pyrolysis segment of the advanced recycling market. In November 2024, the energy giant announced an investment of over USD 200 million to expand its recycling operations significantly. This capital injection facilitates adding 350 million pounds of annual capacity across its Texas facilities. Management has set a total global recycling capacity target of 500 million pounds by 2026. A longer-term goal aims to reach 1 billion pounds of global capacity by 2027. Such rapid scaling demonstrates high internal confidence in the sector's long-term returns.
Operational data supports these ambitious targets. As of May 2025, the Baytown facility successfully processed over 100 million pounds of plastic waste. Since startup, the company processed more than 70 million pounds of waste as of late 2024. The new expansion strategy includes adding 2 units at the Baytown complex specifically to handle increased volume. Simultaneously, 2 units are being added at the Beaumont facility. These moves signify a transition from pilot phases to industrial-scale dominance, positioning ExxonMobil as a primary supplier for the advanced recycling market.
Competitor Capital Inflows are Rapidly Scaling Regional Processing Infrastructure Networks
Competitors are racing to secure market share alongside ExxonMobil by developing regional strongholds. LyondellBasell is advancing construction of the MoReTec plant in Wesseling, Germany, with a capacity of 50,000 tons per year. Construction is scheduled for completion by the end of 2025. The facility’s output is designed to offset the waste generated by 1.2 million German citizens annually. To secure necessary materials, LyondellBasell invested USD 135 million jointly with partners into the Cyclyx Circularity Center. These investments highlight the sector's shift toward integrated value chains within the advanced recycling market.
Braven Environmental is concurrently strengthening the North American infrastructure. The company announced a USD 145 million capital investment in February 2025 for a new facility in Texarkana, Texas. To facilitate this development, the project secured property tax incentives requiring a minimum investment of USD 20 million in the region. Braven is committed to creating at least 10 new full-time jobs as part of the state incentive package. Such projects illustrate how regional economic incentives are successfully attracting substantial private equity into the circular economy.
Technology Licensing Deals are Opening Lucrative Revenue Streams In Asian Advanced Recycling Market
Technology licensing has become a primary vehicle for rapid international growth and revenue generation. Honeywell finalized plans for a 30,000-ton capacity facility in China, specifically Shandong Province, in August 2024. Expanding its footprint further, the company is developing a 60,000-ton capacity project in Turkey featuring two parallel units, with startup targeted for 2025. Additionally, Honeywell licensed technology for a 30,000-ton facility in South Korea, slated for 2025 production. These movements indicate a strong Asian and European appetite for American processing technologies driving the advanced recycling market.
Alterra Energy is also scaling through strategic licensing rather than solely owning assets. The company licensed technology for a Gulf Coast facility with a potential capacity of 192,000 tons per annum. Operational credibility is backed by its industrial demonstration plant in Akron, Ohio, which maintains a capacity of 20,000 tons per year. These developments confirm that technology holders are moving beyond owner-operator models to franchise their intellectual property globally. Consequently, the industry is witnessing a proliferation of standardized processing units across multiple continents.
Industrialized Sorting Hubs are Finally Solving Critical Upstream Supply Bottlenecks
Feedstock availability remains the critical bottleneck being solved in 2025 through industrialization. Cyclyx announced the Final Investment Decision for its second Circularity Center, known as CCC2, on November 26, 2024. The CCC2 facility in Fort Worth, Texas, will have a capacity of 300 million pounds per year. Combined with the first Houston facility, total feedstock processing capacity will reach 600 million pounds annually. The first facility is confirmed for startup in mid-2025, while CCC2 is scheduled to begin operations in the second half of 2026.
Infrastructure development creates tangible economic benefits while securing supply for the advanced recycling market. Each of these facilities is projected to create 100 local jobs. Eastman is similarly active, having secured a supply partnership with Rumpke Waste & Recycling to sort hard-to-recycle PET from Columbus, Ohio. These initiatives are essential for the market to function, as they bridge the gap between municipal waste collection and chemical processing. Without industrialized sorting and aggregation, downstream reactors cannot operate at nameplate capacities.
Private Equity Remains Resilient Despite Governmental Grant Volatility and Delays
Financial resilience is testing the mettle of key market players as they navigate funding landscapes. PureCycle Technologies successfully raised USD 300 million in capital in June 2025 to fund operations. The company also completed a bond sale of USD 22.5 million in August 2024 to maintain liquidity. In contrast, Eastman announced a USD 1.2 billion planned investment for its Longview, Texas facility. However, the project faced a setback when the DOE canceled a USD 375 million grant award in May 2025.
Strategic agility is required to navigate these financial hurdles within the advanced recycling market. Consequently, Eastman announced a 2-year delay for the Longview project in August 2025. Despite the delay, the project retained USD 70 million in state and local tax incentives, proving that regional governments remain committed to the technology. These fluctuations underscore that while the sector is growing, capital allocation remains sensitive to government policy. Investors are prioritizing projects with secured funding and clear operational runways.
Record Breaking Production Rates are Validating Continuous Chemical Processing Viability in Advanced Recycling Market
Production metrics in 2025 have finally matched theoretical promises, boosting stakeholder confidence. PureCycle’s Ironton facility achieved a record production of 7.2 million pounds of resin in Q3 2025. The facility hit a monthly production record of 3.3 million pounds in September 2025. This followed a Q2 2025 production total of 3.4 million pounds. Furthermore, the plant demonstrated a peak feed rate of 14,000 pounds per hour in a test on August 1, 2025. Operational uptime reached 67% in December 2024, showing steady reliability improvements.
Established chemical giants are showing even higher efficiency rates in the advanced recycling market. Eastman’s Kingsport methanolysis plant operated at 105% of its design rate by mid-2025. Eastman successfully recycled 63 million pounds of plastic waste in 2024 alone. These milestones prove that molecular recycling technologies can operate continuously at industrial scales. Reliability is the key metric that brand owners have been waiting for to sign long-term offtake agreements. The market has transitioned from proof-of-concept to performance optimization.
Strategic Cancellations and Offtake Partnerships are Stabilizing Long Term Growth
Project attrition is refining the market by weeding out less viable ventures. Encina officially cancelled its Point Township, PA project in April 2024, removing 450,000 tons of planned annual capacity. According to Lux Research’s 2025 update, over 50% of projects scheduled for 2025 completion missed their deadlines. Consequently, global installed capacity ended 2024 just shy of 1 million tons, missing the 3-million-tonne projection. However, surviving players in the advanced recycling market are deepening their commitments. PureCycle is installing a compounding facility with 100 million pounds of annual capacity, finishing in late 2025.
International partnerships are filling the gaps left by cancelled projects. PureCycle signed Letters of Intent for 100 million pounds of feedstock for a future Thailand facility. Mura Technology’s project with Mitsubishi in Japan targets 25,000 tons of capacity starting in 2025. Plastic Energy’s second plant in Spain with TotalEnergies targets 33,000 tons capacity for early 2025. Furthermore, TotalEnergies committed to purchasing 100,000 tons of recycled polymer feedstock annually from U.S. projects. These commitments ensure that the industry continues to expand despite individual project failures.
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Advanced Recycling Market Major Players:
- Agilyx
- BASF
- BlueAlp Innovations
- Brightmark
- Carbios
- Enerkem
- ExxonMobil Chemical
- Gr3n Recycling
- GreenMantra Technologies
- Ioniqa Technologies
- Loop Industries
- LyondellBasell
- Mura Technology
- Plastic Energy
- Polystyvert
- Pyrowave
- Quantafuel
- Recycling Technologies
- Renewlogy
- Shell
- Other Prominent Players
Key Market Segmentation:
By Technology
- Thermal pyrolysis (plastic-to-oil)
- Catalytic pyrolysis
- Depolymerization (including glycolysis, methanolysis)
- PET depolymerization to monomers
- Polyurethane/nylon depolymerization
- Enzymatic / biochemical recycling
- Gasification
- Pyrolysis
- Syngas production for chemicals/fuels
- High-temp gasification of mixed feedstock
- Solvolysis / chemical solvolysis
- Solvent-based recycling of polymers
- Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL)
- Wet waste/biomass co-processing
- Enzyme-assisted depolymerisation pilots
- Others
By Feedstock
- Mixed plastic waste (unsorted municipal plastic)
- Polyethylene (PE)
- Polypropylene (PP)
- Polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
- Multi-layer films & flexible packaging
- Styrenics, ABS & other engineering plastics
By Application
- Packaging (rigid & flexible)
- Automotive & transportation
- Consumer goods & electronics
- Building & construction materials
- Textiles & fibers
- Industrial & oilfield applications
By End-Product
- Recycled feedstock oils & fuels (pyrolysis oil)
- Recovered monomers / chemical intermediates
- rPET / recycled resin pellets
- Performance/engineering polymers
- Waxes & specialty chemicals
- Energy / cogeneration outputs
- Others
By Region
- North America
- Europe
- Asia Pacific
- Middle East and Africa
- South America
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