Independent Analysis Confirms HPQ’s Pilot-Scale Fumed Silica Production

Baghouse-collected fumed silica yield is outperforming initial projections at this pilot stage.

MONTREAL, Canada — HPQ Silicon Inc. (“HPQ” or the “Company”) (TSX-V: HPQ) (OTCQB: HPQFF) (FRA: 8PY1), a technology company developing next-generation processes for advanced material manufacturing, is pleased to inform shareholders that it has received an independent analysis confirming fumed silica production. The analysis confirms Fumed Silica was produced by HPQ Silica Polvere Inc. [1] (“HSPI”)’s proprietary Fumed Silica Reactor (FSR) Pilot Plant during its four-batch Phase One test.

Further to the Company’s May 15, 2025, release, HSPI’s technology supplier, PyroGenesis Inc. (TSX: PYR, OTCQX: PYRGF, FRA: 8PY1) (“PyroGenesis”), has informed HPQ that the independent analysis of the material produced and collected in the baghouse supports the following conclusions:

1. The white powder material recovered is, in fact, Fumed Silica,
2. The impurities observed in the recovered material were consistent with expectations and are present in a form that makes them readily removable.
3. The production yield was greater than anticipated at this stage, and this bodes well for the ultimate economics of the project.
4. A side-by-side comparison of Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) images shows a high degree of similarity between the microstructures and morphological complexity of HSPI’s material produced at lab scale, pilot scale, and that of commercial mid- to high-surface-area fumed silica grades.

“These results significantly strengthen the commercial outlook for our Fumed Silica Reactor (FSR) technology,” said Bernard Tourillon, President & CEO of HPQ Silicon and HPQ Silica. “We’ve confirmed the successful recovery of fumed silica from the baghouse section of our pilot plant and also validated our proprietary FSR process reliably—even with a twentyfold increase in scale. Achieving this level of consistency and material quality so early in the pilot phase demonstrates the strength of our approach to de-risking commercialization. With these technical milestones achieved, we’re now ready to advance to the next stage—distributing samples to qualified third parties under NDA and LOI for independent evaluation and qualification.”

NEXT STEPS

The remaining phases of the pilot plant program will focus on two primary objectives:

1. Enhancing product-grade purity to determine market fit better, by:
   1. improving process control and parameter stability,
   2. achieving higher product surface areas through optimized powder morphology and viscosity
2. Reaching the targeted production capacity of 50 tonnes per year (TPY) by:
   1. increasing silica conversion efficiency and overall yield

In addition to these priorities, the overarching goal of the ongoing testing is to generate the critical data needed to support the development of scale-up plans and equipment modifications. This will be essential to making the system commercially viable following a further twentyfold scale increase beyond the current pilot plant capacity.

---

REFERENCE SOURCES
[1] A wholly owned subsidiary of HPQ Silicon Inc., when technology supplier PyroGenesis announced its intention to exercise its option to acquire a 50% stake in HSPI in May 2024.
[2] TEM images of Evonik’s commercial fumed silica material were obtained from the article:
“Quantification of branching in fumed silica” by Andrew Mulderig, Gregory Beaucage⁎, Karsten Vogt, Hanqiu Jiang, and Vikram Kuppa, published in the Journal of Aerosol Science. These reference images were used for comparative analysis alongside lab- and pilot-scale samples produced by HSPI.