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Montréal, November 15, 2022 - Biothermica Technologies Inc., a Canadian cleantech corporation, announced today the delivery and full operation of its first full-scale Vamox^® unit developed for the abatement of ventilation air methane (VAM) from one of the largest metallurgical coal mines in Buchanan County, Virginia (USA) owned by Coronado Global Resources, an Australian public corporation listed on ASX.

Approved by the U.S. Department of Labor, Safety, Health and Mine Administration (MSHA), the Vamox^® unit was delivered on July 26, 2022, as a result of a multi-million dollars turnkey contract in April 2021. It is a specifically optimized regenerative thermal oxidation technology which, once preheated, allows the diluted methane to be oxidized in the ventilation air without using polluting fossil fuels. It will result in an annual reduction of some 300,000 tons of CO₂ equivalent (tCO₂e), which is equivalent to taking about 65,000 gasoline cars off the road per year. The carbon credits generated by the project will be registered according to the rules defined by the California Air Resources Board, under the Mine Methane Capture (MMC) protocol and sold on the U.S. market.

"We are proud of the delivery of our 160,000 cfm Vamox^® unit. This follows more than fifteen (15) years of development that began in 2007 with an initial 25,000 cfm pilot plant at the JWR metallurgical coal mine site in Brookwood, Alabama. The carbon credits produced by this plant were the first such credits traded on the Quebec-California carbon market in 2016. The involvement of our engineering team and the support of several strategic suppliers were necessary to successfully complete the project on budget and on schedule. The Vamox^® unit offers a treatment capacity that exceeds any other technology on the market, positioning Biothermica as a leader in the destruction of methane in underground mines," said Dominique Kay, Vice President of the Air and Technologies Division.

"Our government has high ambitions to fight climate change. To reach our objectives, we need even more initiatives like Vamox^®, which aims to destroy mining methane. With this technology, Biothermica reinforces Quebec’s leadership position in the field of clean technologies," said Pierre Fitzgibbon, Minister of the Economy, Innovation and Energy, Minister Responsible for Regional Economic Development and Minister Responsible for the Metropolis and the Montréal Region.

Well established in the carbon market for over 20 years, Biothermica is recognized as a technology leader in the development and implementation of technologies related to the destruction of methane from landfills and underground coal mines. In fact, Biothermica is a finalist for the ESG Impact of the Year global excellence award at the prestigious World Mining Congress gala to be held on December 1^st in London, based on the implementation of its VAMOX^® mining methane destruction technology. A powerful greenhouse gas 28 times more harmful than CO₂, methane represents 20% of all GHGs emitted by the planet.

"The teams at Investissement Québec International are proud to have supported and accompanied Biothermica for several years in their export and international development efforts. Today’s announcement demonstrates Biothermica’s expertise in the development of clean technologies and will enable them to export their know-how, in addition to contributing to efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions," said Hubert Bolduc, President of Investissement Québec International.

Global Potential of the Technology

Underground coal mine methane accounts for nearly 10% of all methane emitted to the atmosphere, or 1.5 billion tCO₂e according to recent satellite measurements of emissions and represents nearly 2.3% of global GHG emissions. The major emitters are China, India, Australia, the United States, Russia, Poland and South Africa.

"The destruction of methane by the Vamox^® technology covers a significant potential sales market estimated at more than $25 billion. Other projects are being discussed in the United States and elsewhere in the world as well as in mines other than coal mines. Our company is part of the solution to global warming and is positioned as a world technology leader in this promising field, said Dominique Kay.

Invited by the U.S. Department of the Environment (US EPA), the company presented its Vamox^® technology in Washington on September 28 to representatives from more than 80 countries, including Canada, who signed the COP 26 commitment to reduce more than 35% of the world’s methane emissions by 2030. Methane emissions from the gas, oil, mining and waste sectors represent more than 20% of global GHG emissions and are responsible for 35% of global warming.

"The quick reduction of GHGs concerns us all, given the current climate emergency. We must transform the words into actions. It is through immediate and tangible GHG reduction actions such as the implementation of the Vamox^® in Virginia that we will be able to reach the +1.5°C target of the Paris Agreement. At Biothermica, we have the technologies, we have the expertise, we take action," said Guy Drouin, President of Biothermica.

About Biothermica Technologies Inc.

Founded in 1987, Biothermica Technologies Inc. is a leader in the development, finance, construction and operation of methane removal and recovery projects from landfills and underground mines. As an integrated developer, the company also trades the carbon credits and electricity generated by its projects in domestic and international markets. Biothermica has completed carbon credit and electricity generation projects in North and Central America develops others in Africa (Togo), the Caribbean (Haiti), Asia, Australia and Europe. The company also provides turnkey solutions for industrial emissions control. In 1996, the company set up the largest biogas plant in Canada (25 MW - Gazmont) in Montreal and in 2006 registered a biogas valorization project in El Salvador under the Kyoto Protocol, the carbon credits of which were sold to Luxembourg. This project was selected by the US EPA, the Global Methane Initiative (GMI) and the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) as one of the most successful projects in the world. It is the first carbon project to be insured by the World Bank.

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Investissement Québec media team
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