20. Long-term employee benefits
As at 31-12-2023 | As at 31-12-2022 | |
Net defined benefit asset | -0.1 | -0.1 |
Net defined benefit liability | 2.4 | 2.5 |
Other long-term employee benefit commitments | 1.3 | 1.5 |
Total | 3.6 | 3.9 |
Net defined benefit assets and liabilities
Net defined benefit assets and liabilities relate to post-employment defined benefit arrangements.
Other long-term employee benefit commitments
Other long-term employee benefit commitments relate mainly to anniversary commitments, conditional incentive plans, and health insurance.
Main characteristics of the defined benefit plans
Corbion sponsors defined benefit pension plans in the US and the UK. Both plans are closed schemes and based on final pay. Further, Corbion sponsors a legal severance payment plan in Thailand. All plans have been established in accordance with the legal requirements of the countries involved. The defined benefit plans are administered by a separate fund that is legally separated from the entity. The board of the pension fund is composed of an equal number of representatives from both employers and (former) employees.
The plans typically expose the group to actuarial risks such as investment risk, interest rate risk, and longevity risk.
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Investment risk - The present value of the defined benefit plan liability is calculated using a discount rate determined by reference to high-quality corporate bond yields; if the return on plan assets falls below this rate, it will create a plan deficit.
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Interest rate risk - A decrease in the bond interest rate will increase the plan liability; however, this will be partly offset by an increase in the return on the plan's debt investments.
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Longevity risk - The present value of the defined benefit liability is calculated by reference to the best estimate of the mortality of plan participants both during and after their employment. An increase in the life expectancy of the plan participants will increase the plan's liability.
The defined benefit obligation as per year-end consisted almost entirely of the UK plan and is summarized below:
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The Normal Retirement Age (NRA) is 65; however, Section 1 members are able to take their benefits in respect of pre 1 October 2003 service unreduced from age 60.
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Pensions in deferment increase in line with statutory revaluation with the exception of pre 1 October 2003 benefits for Section 1 members, which have an underpin linked to the level of pension increases in payment (which are linked to the Consumer Price Index (CPI)).
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Pensions in payment increase in line with CPI capped at 5% for benefits in respect of pre 1 January 2006 service and CPI capped at 2.5% for benefits in respect of post 31 December 2005 service.
In 2021, an insurance policy was acquired to fund all the employee benefits in the plan. Corbion retained the legal obligation to pay further amounts if the insurer does not pay the employee benefits specified in the insurance policy.
The average duration of the defined benefit obligation as at 31 December 2023 is 18 years.
Breakdown of the amounts recognized in respect of defined benefit pension plans in the income statement and statement of comprehensive income
2023 | 2022 | |
Current-service costs | 0.3 | 0.5 |
Net interest expense | 0.1 | |
Total pension costs recognized in income statement | 0.4 | 0.5 |
Remeasurements net defined benefit liability | ||
- Return on plan assets (excluding amounts included in interest income) | -2.9 | 35.3 |
- Actuarial (gains)/losses arising from changes in demographic assumptions | -0.3 | -3.3 |
- Actuarial (gains)/losses arising from changes in financial assumptions | 2.2 | -36.6 |
- Actuarial (gains)/losses arising from experience adjustments | 0.6 | 3.4 |
Total pension costs recognized in other comprehensive income | -0.4 | -1.2 |
Total | 0.0 | -0.7 |
Breakdown of the amounts recognized in the statement of financial position
As at 31-12-2023 | As at 31-12-2022 | |
Present value of defined benefit obligations | 57.7 | 54.1 |
Fair value of plan assets | -55.4 | -51.7 |
Funded status | 2.3 | 2.4 |
Restrictions on assets recognized | ||
Net liability/(asset) | 2.3 | 2.4 |
Movements in defined benefit obligation
2023 | 2022 | |
As at 1 January | 54.1 | 92.9 |
Current-service costs | 0.2 | 0.5 |
Interest charges | 2.6 | 1.7 |
Pension payments | -2.1 | -2.4 |
Remeasurement (gains)/losses | ||
- Actuarial (gains)/losses arising from changes in demographic assumptions | -0.3 | -3.3 |
- Actuarial (gains)/losses arising from changes in financial assumptions | 2.2 | -36.6 |
- Actuarial (gains)/losses arising from experience adjustments | 0.6 | 3.4 |
Exchange rate differences | 0.4 | -2.1 |
As at 31 December | 57.7 | 54.1 |
Movements in fair value of plan assets
2023 | 2022 | |
As at 1 January | 51.7 | 89.7 |
Interest income | 2.5 | 1.7 |
Pension payments | -2.1 | -2.4 |
Contributions from the employer | 0.3 | |
Remeasurement gains/(losses) | ||
- Return on plan assets (excluding amounts included in interest income) | 2.9 | -35.3 |
Exchange rate differences | 0.4 | -2.3 |
As at 31 December | 55.4 | 51.7 |
The return on plan assets (excluding amounts included in interest income) is significantly influenced by the acquired insurance policy in 2021 to fund all the employee benefits in the UK plan. The insurance policy is an exact match of the covered liabilities and is held by the scheme as an asset.
The investment strategy is based on the composition of the obligations of the pension schemes. Based on Asset Liability Management models analyses have been performed on a regular basis to define the investment portfolio. At year-end the asset allocation was as follows.
Plan asset classes
As at 31-12-2023 | As at 31-12-2022 | |
Equities | 4.4 | 4.8 |
Bonds | 2.6 | 2.7 |
Other | 48.4 | 44.2 |
Total assets | 55.4 | 51.7 |
All equities and bonds are quoted. The amount in the other category consists for the vast majority of the acquired insurance policy in 2021 to fund all the employee benefits in the UK plan. The insurance policy is an exact match of the covered liabilities and is held by the scheme as an asset.
The main weighted average actuarial assumptions
2023 | 2022 | |
Discount rate | 4.7% | 4.7% |
Pension growth rate |
Sensitivity of the defined benefit obligation to changes in the weighted principal assumptions
Change in assumption | Impact increase of asusmption on DBO | Impact decrease of asusmption on DBO | |
Discount rate | 0.50% | (4.3) | 5.1 |
Pension growth rate | 0.50% | - | - |
The above sensitivity analyses are based on a change in an assumption while holding all other assumptions constant. In practice, this is unlikely to occur, and changes in some of the assumptions may be correlated. To calculate the sensitivity of the defined benefit obligation to significant actuarial assumptions the same method is applied (calculation of the present value of the defined benefit obligation using the projected unit credit method at the end of the reporting period) which is also used to calculate the pension liability recognized within the consolidated statement of financial position.
The anticipated contributions to the defined benefit pension plans in the coming year will amount to € 0.2 million.