23. Deferred income and governments grants

Deferred income is recognised under the principle of prudence and accrual basis of accounting. Deferred income comprises:

• funds obtained to finance acquisition or production of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets. This is accounted for by gradually increasing other operating income by an amount corresponding to the depreciation of these assets in the part financed by the said cash. This relates in particular to loans and credit facilities, whether partially or wholly remitted, and to grants for the purchase of tangible assets and to contributions to development work or the purchase of intangible assets,
• property, plant and equipment and intangible assets acquired free of charge. Write-offs of this income are made to other operating income, in parallel with depreciation on property, plant and equipment.

Government grants are recognised if there is a reasonable assurance that the grant will be received and all the related conditions will be met. Government grants related to assets are amortized to other operating income proportionally to the depreciation charges on these assets.