Vicat Sa Unsp/Adr

Welcome to the VCAT 2025 Full Year Results presentation. For the first part of the conference call, the participants will be in listen-only mode. During the questions and answers session, all the participants are able to ask questions. Now, I will hand the conference over to Guy Sitos, Chairman and Group CEO, Hugh Schommel, Deputy CEO and Group CFO, and Pierre Pedrosa, Head of Investor Relations. Please, sir, go ahead.

Thank you. Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to VCAT's 2025 results presentation. I'm Guy Sidot, Chairman and CEO of the VICA Group. Alongside me are Mr. Hugues Chaumel, Deputy CEO and CFO, as well as Pierre Pedrosa, Head of Investor Relations. On slide two, As a preliminary remark, we would like to draw your attention to the fact that the forward-looking information presented here reflects our current assessment of expected trends across the Group's various markets and should not be regarded as forecasts. On slide 3, 2025 is part of a solid and sustainable performance trajectory, illustrating the strengths and resilience of VCAT's business model. Consolidated revenue amounted to 3.85 billion euros in 2025, affecting an average annual growth rate of nearly 7% over the past five years. EBITDA reached 771 billion euros, also representing average growth of close to 7% over the same period. Roche remained stable at 8.1%, pending the full contribution of the nuclear in Senegal. Lastly, the group's leverage ratio continued to decrease, reaching 1.49 times in 2005, further strengthening VCAT's financial structure. These results once again demonstrate VCAT's ability to consistently combine operational performance with financial discipline in a demanding environment. Let's move to slide four. As a reminder, VCAT's business model is built on several key pillars that underpin its resilience. First, a family shareholding structure and a long-term vision grounded in continuity, which enable us to pursue a consistent and sustainable industrial strategy. We are a cement-focused business and benefit from a bone-earned high performing industrial asset base, vertically integrated across the value chain. We have a multi-regional model supported by a decentralized organization, which allows us to operate efficiently and to respond to the local needs of our markets. Vitka also has a long standing tradition of innovation. with stronger R&D capabilities. From the invention of artificial cement in 1817 to today's low-carbon cements such as Cara in France or Progresso in Switzerland, we are positioned as a key player of our industry's decarbonization. Lastly, we benefit from a geographically diversified portfolio across both developed and emerging markets. These pillars are the core of VCAT's identity and provide the foundation for a sustainable and robust model fully aligned with the ongoing transformation of our sector. Slide five provides an analysis of the group's investment cycle of the past 10 years and how we have balanced our strategic priorities with financial discipline. Following an initial phase between 2015 and 2018, during which investment levels remained stable, we made the decision from 2019 onwards to accelerate capital expenditure at a time when funding conditions were particularly favourable. Since 2023, in a context of higher cost of financing, we have been able to capitalize on these past investments to generate high cash flows and leverage of balance sheet. We do this while maintaining a level of investment consistent with our initial goals. Turning now to the key highlights of 2025 on slide six, In a complex international environment, the group delivered solid results. Organic revenue growth came in at 3.3%, accelerating to 8.1% in the first quarter. EBITDA reached 771 million euros, representing organic growth of 3.7%, compared to a record year in 2024. However, foreign exchange headwinds had a significant impact, resulting in a slight EBITDA decline on a reported basis. For the third consecutive year, the group generated strong free cash flow amounting to €324 million in 2025 and continued to reduce its net debt. Lastly, We made further progress on decarbonization. We reached an important milestone in securing the financial of VIA, of flagship carbon capture project in France, with the award of two subsidies at both the European and French levels. All together, these elements once again illustrate the strengths of VCAT's model, which is able to combine operational performance financial discipline and decarbonization. In France, as shown on slide 7, the radiation market has gone through an unprecedented slowdown and is now at its lowest level in 25 years. As far as we are concerned, we have lost 600,000 tons of cement over the past three years, representing nearly 20% of our production. Despite this environment, France showed remarkable resilience in 2025. After six consecutive quarters of decline, volume stabilized in the second half of 2025 at a low level, with a slight rebound in the fourth quarter. While visibility remains limited, notably due to the political concept and the upcoming municipal elections in France, this development is encouraging in the context of reduced interest rates. Let me remind you that residential needs in France remain very significant in this respect. The Relance Logement Plan, recently announced by the government, is a specifically intended to address this situation by supporting the construction of new housing. As a result, the conditions are gradually aligning for a moderate and progressive recovery from 2026 onwards. With its long standing roots in France, which represents 31% of the group's revenue and with its available capacity, Wicca is very well positioned to benefit from this recovery as soon as it materializes. Still in France, as shown on slide 8, the TELT project. TELT is the Oralpine Lyon-Turin Tunnel. So this project contributed to activity 2025, it is currently the largest civil engineering project under construction in Europe. The gradual ramp up with the commissioning of the tunnel boring machines is expected to support cement conception in 2026 and even accelerate it from 2027 onwards. Overall, we have practically secured more than 1.3 million tons of cement, as well as around 4 million tons of aggregates over the lifetime of the project. I will also highlight a works package named CO11, which we won jointly with Vinci. This contract covers the treatment of excavated material. In total, nearly 24 million tons of material will be sorted with the objective of recycling half of it. And we have recently inaugurated our first treatment station. And today, the TELT project represents a major growth driver for operation in France. It will provide strong support to our volumes over the next seven to eight years. More broadly, the outlook for the infrastructure segment in France is promising, with good visibility over the coming years. The launch of the French access work for TELT, which is in addition to the main TELT tunnel, The future EPR nuclear reactors, notably near our Ontario plant, and the construction of the so-called PANG aircraft carrier. It's a new generation of aircraft carrier in France, in Toulon. And these are a few examples that will drive up our activity in the coming years. In Brazil now, on slide 9, The group delivered a solid performance in 2025, supported by favorable market momentum and sustained commercial development in the Midwest region, notably in Brasilia and the state of Goiás. In 2025, we completed the acquisition of RealMix, a ready-mix concrete player in Goiás. This transaction enabled us to further strengthen our vertical integration and to secure additional cement and aggregate volumes. Consolidated from the 1st of September 2025 onwards, RealMix made a positive contribution to our results at the end of the year. In Brazil, we generated a big year of 63 million euros in 2025, driven by market growth, the strong performance of our commercial teams, the contribution of RealMix, and the quality of our industrial asset base. Let us now turn to Turkey on slide 10. Our results grew strongly. in 2035, with EBITDA reaching 58 million euros, up by nearly 32%. The corporate rates in Central Anatolia were, or seven volumes, increased by 19% in 2025. The construction market in this region benefited from favorable demographic trends with populations migrating from the areas affected by the 2023 earthquake towards the Ankara region. In addition, in 2025, the government accelerated infrastructure projects, not only around Ankara, but also in northern Anatolia in order to rebuild the areas impacted by the earthquake. We are also seeing some production capacity being redirected towards export markets, which favors domestic players such as Vika in Turkey. And in the current hyperinflationary environment in Turkey, we have been able to adjust our selling prices in order to protect our margins. On slide 11, In Egypt, the remarkable turnaround of our performance continued in 2025. EBITDA once again increased sharply, reaching €61 million, up by nearly 79%, with the margin rising to 37.3%. Export volumes remain sustained, and the rebound of the domestic market was confirmed in the second half of the year, notably with the launch of several large real estate projects. Longer term, the region continues to offer attractive prospects for the Group, particularly through potential reconstruction opportunities that may arise in certain areas currently affected by conflicts. Let us finally turn to Senegal on slide 12, where we have made a major investment over the past few years. And after a startup in June 2025, KIN6 has continued to ramp up, delivering first tangible financial contributions in the first quarter. As a reminder, this modern high-performance facility is intended to replace kilns 3 and 4 and to eliminate our clean kiln imports, which has already been achieved. It will also accelerate our decarbonisation and will generate cost savings of €20 per tonne of cement in the coming years. The ramp-up of kiln 6 will continue this year and will be a key driver of the Group's performance in Africa in 2026 and 2027. I will now hand over to Hugues Chomel for a more detailed review of our financial statement.

Thank you, Mr. Silos, and good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I will start with the main highlights of the Group Consolidated Income Statement on slide 13. Revenue amounted to 3.854 billion euros, representing an organic growth of 3.3%, but remaining broadly stable on a reported basis due to a negative foreign exchange impact of 242 million euros. EBITDA reached 771 million euros, up organically by 3.7%, in line with the plus 2 to plus 3% target communicated last July. The EBITDA margin therefore stood at 20%, consistent with our medium-term priority. Net income group share increased by 6% at constant scope and exchange rates, reaching 275 million euros. Despite a particularly negative foreign exchange impact in 2025, the quality of the group results demonstrate once again our ability to deliver solid operational and financial performance in a challenging economic environment. On slide 14, you can see the evolution of the revenue by region in 2025 compared with 2020. scope and exchange rates, the solid organic growth delivered across the group reflect contrasting trends from one region to another. France recorded a slight increase on a reported basis supported by the gradual stabilization of the cement business in the second half of the year, as mentioned by Mr. Siddos, and by the positive contribution of the integration of ceramics since January 2025. The Europe region grew by 7.9% on a reported basis, benefiting beyond the appreciation of the Swiss franc from the recovery of the market in Switzerland, BGA's exposure to major infrastructure projects, as well as the commercial success of a low-carbon offering. Americas posted a decrease, mainly reflecting the slowdown in the United States. This decrease was, however, partly offset by the strong performance in Brazil. In US, interest rates remain high throughout the year, penalizing the housing sector. Uncertainty resulting from the tax and tariff changes created a climate of instability, which impacted the non-residential markets. In this environment, the group performance was contrasted across regions with growth in the southeast and a sharp decline in California. In Asia, revenue recorded a slight organic decline of 1.5%. Activity in India remained volatile due to a highly competitive environment, particularly in the south of the country, which put pressure on pricing despite an improvement in the second half of the year. The Mediterranean region stood out, delivering organic growth of more than 30%. Lastly, Africa posted a slight decrease of 2.9% despite the strong performance in Senegal, notably driven by an acceleration in aggregate sales following the restart of major public infrastructure projects. As you can see on the chart on the right of the slide, the group organic growth accelerated throughout the year. reaching plus 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Now turning to slide 15, to the evolution of ABDA, whose main drivers are illustrated on this chart. The increase at constant scope and exchange rates is mainly explained by a positive volume effect in cement, concrete and aggregates. overhaul pricing developments allowed to offset cost increases, which were notably driven by wage inflation. Industrial performance also contributed positively, notably in Senegal. Foreign exchange had a negative impact of 46 million euros. This reflects the depreciation of all currencies in which the group operates against the euro, with a notable exception of the Swiss franc. Let me remind you that 59% of the group revenues is exposed to non-euro currencies. Overall, EBITDA recorded a moderate decrease of 1.6% compared to 2024, which was which was a record year for the group. Therefore, this can be considered a very solid performance given the environment we faced in 2025. Moving to slide 16, 2025 was also characterized by a strong cash generation. We maintained strict investment discipline. net capex amounted to 299 million euros down compared to 2024. capex was split more or less evenly between maintenance capex and strategic capex including the cash outflows related to kiln 6 in senegal this discipline will be maintained in 2026 with expected capex of around 290 million euros for the third consecutive year the WCAG Group generated strong free cash flow amounting to €324 million in 2025 and illustrating the highly cash-generative nature of our business model. As shown on slide 17, this free cash flow of €324 million notably reflects a further reduction in working capital requirement And as I just mentioned, control over capex. Cash conversion rates stood at 42% in 2025. On this basis, and taking into account the group's market capitalization at the end of January, the cash-free cash flow yield is around 9%, one of the highest in the industry. This highlights both the strength of all cash generation and a re-rating potential that remains significant despite the share price increase over the past year. This cash generation enabled us to continue on the leveraging trajectory. As shown on slide 18, the group net debts decreased by 85 million euros in 2025 to reach 1,151,000,000 euros. A leverage ratio stood at 1.49 times ABDA, marking a further reduction in line with our priorities. On slide 19, you can see a detailed breakdown of a group net debt at the end of 2025. It is characterized by a well-balanced maturity profile with an average maturity close to five years. Average interest rate was 3.86% before hedging in 2025, down significantly year-on-year. With growth cash at €528 million and €877 million of available unloved credit lines, the group benefits from strong liquidity and the resources needed to continue pursuing its development. Thank you for your attention. I will now hand it back to Mr. Silos.

Thank you, Hugo. Let me now briefly comment on VCAT's climate performance in 2025 on slide 20. We made further progress towards our 2030 targets across all key indicators, particularly in Europe. In France, We continued to pursue a particularly ambitious trajectory, the reduction of the clean-care rate to below 80%, together with an increase in the alternative fuel rate to more than 70%, up 5 percentage points year-on-year. This made a strong contribution to the group's overall performance. In 2026, the Argilor project in France focused on further reducing the clinker rate as well as the ramp up of KIN6 in Senegal with regard to alternative fuels should accelerate the reduction of emissions. Our actions also extend to innovation. You can see two examples on the left hand side of this slide. Product innovation with Progresso that makes the first concrete of Switzerland with emissions of less than 100 kilograms of CO2 per cubic meter. Process innovation with Catch4Climate, which will be inaugurated this summer and aims to facilitate CO2 capture while reducing capture costs. You can see on slide 21 that at group level, low carbon cements accounted for nearly one quarter of total sales volume in 2035. This indicator, which we are presenting for the first time today, is calculated in accordance with the methodology defined by the International Energy Agency and adopted by France Ciment. In France, the commercial success for DECA range continues. In Switzerland, nearly 100% of our offering is classified as low carbon, notably with products such as Progresso, which I mentioned earlier, and which is also a remarkable commercial success. We are also a leading player in low carbon cement in California and Brazil. The carbon footprint of our products continues to improve in line with our climate roadmap. This roadmap is supported by initial investments and by acceleration for low carbon innovations. Turning to slide 22 now. Regarding Viya, our carbon capture project in France, we reached a major new milestone with the award of two subsidies at both the European and French levels. These awards demonstrate the credibility of our approach and our commitment. I will remind you that the Viya project aims to capture and then sequester 1.2 million tons of CO2 per year at the Montalieu-Versieux cement plant, Bicat's largest facility in France. The captured CO2 will be transported by pipeline to Faust-sur-Mer, which should then be liquefied before being shipped to its storage site in the Adriatic Sea. This project relies on a complex value chain involving several partners and operators at each stage, I mean capture, transport, liquefaction, maritime shipping and geological storage. The subsidies awarded to us for this project amount to 340 million euros, combining French support under the Grand Projet Industriel de Décarbonation scheme and the European Innovation Fund grant. They are expected to be formalized through contractual agreements over the coming months. As a reminder, the estimated investment for the capture component of the Viya project alone amounts to around 700 million euros before subsidies. Government support is an essential condition for the project's economic viability and we are currently continuing the feasibility studies with the objective of making a final investment decision by the end of 2027. Slide 23 illustrates another important performance driver that WIKA has been working on for many years, artificial intelligence, which we are deploying as an operational tool to support our businesses. Our artificial intelligence initiatives are led by the Digital Factory 1817. That's the year of the invention of artificial cement. This in-house startup based in Lyon and employing 22 people also works for external clients. With AI, our ambition is twofold. First, AI at the service of industrial performance across our cement plants, or so-called RTO for real-time optimizer solution delivers tangible productivity gains in our facilities. It improves product quality and enhances the reliability of our installation. This tool has already been deployed at several pilot sites, Ragland in the United States, PERI in Switzerland, and Kalburgi in India. And we intend to accelerate its rollout. We are targeting productivity gains of at least 5%. This is only the beginning. At the group level, this would translate into an increase in our capacity by around a year. This represents the equivalent of an additional cement production line with a very, very limited investment. Second, AI has a powerful tool for cost optimization. There are many potential use cases, and we have already validated three of them. Improving concrete formulations, optimizing concrete and aggregate logistics, taking into account the location for sites and those for customers, and enhancing our procurement processes. Artificial intelligence is therefore fully part of our operational excellence approach, supporting the group's competitiveness. Turning now to 2026 on slide 24. Growth momentum is set to continue. despite persistent macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainties and foreign exchange rates that are likely to remain volatile and unfavorable. In this context, we remain confident in the Group's ability to continue delivering robust performance supported by its strong operational fundamentals. In 2026, at this early stage of the year, We cautiously expect site growth in sales on a like-for-like basis, site growth in EBITDA on a like-for-like basis, and net capex of around 290 million euros. Regarding capital allocation on the slide 25. Our policy is underpinned by strong free cash flow generation and consistent financial discipline. This policy is built on three pillars. The first pillar is the preservation of a solid financial structure through continued deleveraging and the maintenance of strong liquidity. The second pillar relates to investment. We intend to maintain rigorous discipline while investing consistently with our initial climate objectives. Finally, the third pillar is the dividend. We aim to maintain an attractive distribution policy with dividend growth supported by earnings evolution. This capital allocation reflects the balance we seek. threatening our financial structure, investing selectively in the group's future and continuing to deliver an attractive return to our shareholders. So let's now move naturally to the dividend on slide 26. Based on these 20-25 results, And confident in the group's ability to keep delivering profitable growth, the Board of Directors has decided to propose to shareholders the distribution of a dividend of 2 euros per share. VICA stands out for its stable and highly predictable distribution policy. I will remind you that the dividend has never been reduced in the past 30 years. Let us switch to slide 27. WCAG is pursuing a consistent growth trajectory supported by three mid-term strategic priorities, which we are confirming today. First, maintain an EBITDA margin of at least 20% over the 2025-2027 period. Second, continue our deliveraging. Finally, accelerate a climate roadmap with strong ambitions to reduce CO2 emissions and to promote low-carbon products. These three priorities end up in VCAT's strategy to deliver profitable and sustainable growth. On slide 28, to conclude, VCAT's growth in the coming years will be supported by clearly identified growth drivers. several of which are already underway today first in six in senegal as i have already mentioned it is a major level of competitiveness that will have a material impact on on performance in africa second the telt project its contribution to our cement and aggregate cells is already visible and it is expected to intensify supporting our activity in France over the coming years. Also in France, the residential market is currently at a low point, which creates significant recovery potential. With more than 30% of revenue generated in France, Vika is very well positioned to benefit from this upturn when it materializes. similarly in the us residential construction is currently at a low level and offers strong recovery potential i thought this will be contingent to the interest rate but cycle finally the mediterranean region offer offers significant mid-term growth opportunities notably through potential reconstruction needs that may emerge in areas coming out of a prolonged period of conflict. These drivers reinforce our confidence in VCAT's mid-term trajectory and we enter the coming years with the ambition to pursue disciplined, sustainable and value-creating roles. Ladies and gentlemen, Thank you for your attention. You and myself are now ready to take your questions.

Please note that we will take audio questions from analysts only. You can request to speak via the blue hand icon. We kindly ask investors to submit questions via the chat box below the player. The next question comes from Tom Jong from Barclays. Please unmute your microphone.

Hi, can you hear me? Yes. Great. Thank you very much for the presentation, new presentation format. So three questions from me, if I may. The first one, you've talked about significant price hike announcements in France this year. I know it's early in the year. We don't know enough about how this will develop. But I wanted to ask, in your guidance for slightly higher sales in the EBITDA, What kind of realized pricing are you assuming in Europe? Would that be sort of low, mid, high, single digit? Some color there would be interesting. The second question, just on the U.S., you talked about price absorbing the impact of cost inflation. Could you please elaborate a bit? Should we expect positive price costs in the U.S.? Can you differentiate between the southeast and the west coast? And then the last one just on CapEx. So you guide for 290 million, even though we have Senegal rolling off, which I think was about 50 million of CapEx. Can you just give some color on the projects that you're now investing in? That means the CapEx is fairly stable. Is that mostly growth CapEx, climate CapEx, maintenance catch-up? Yeah, thank you.

I will leave Luc Chommel.

Hi, Tom. Thank you for your questions. Indeed, as you know, the French market has some specific cost drivers, the evolution of electricity costs and the start of the implementation of CBAM that push us to announce high single-digit to low double-digit price increases in the market. As you mentioned in your question, it is early in the year to tell where we stand. I would say a mid to mid-high single-digit would be a good realization probably, and that would translate in a positive price-cost differential. Regarding US, it is even earlier in the year to give you a solid answer. We did announce price increases in both regions, substantial. But as usual, they do apply on April 1. And our ability to get them through and to have them stick will heavily deprive the market context when they roll out. And that's a little bit early for me to give you a prediction on that. We assumed in our guidance, I would say, a neutral price-cost differential. If they would fully materialize, that would be an upside. Regarding capex, indeed, we did guide to 290 million for a new reduction compared to last year. This has always is including about half of maintenance capex. Still, some... last amounts regarding Senegal with the last milestones of the contract and first pre-acceleration in our decarbonization spend to secure our 2030 objectives.

That's clear, thank you. Sorry, could I just follow up just on the European pricing, so you very helpfully said for the U.S., you're assuming in the guidance a neutral price-cost differential. And then you said mid or high... I spoke about France, Tom, not Europe. Oh, that was for France. Okay. So a neutral price-cost differential is in your guidance for France?

Slightly positive.

Slightly positive. Understood. Thank you very much.

And I didn't mention Europe, which has a slightly different cost base, specifically on electricity, where we do expect a positive price and environment.

That's clear. Thank you very much.

Thanks. The next question comes from Ibrahim Homani from CIC. Please unmute your microphone.

Hello, thank you for taking my question. I have three, if I may. The first one is on France. In France, the operating leverage is huge. In case of a 1% increase in volume, what could be the impact on the EBITDA? My second question is on Senegal. Do you confirm that the ABTA contribution will be higher in 2026 than it was in 2025? My last question is on CAPEX. Could you give us the part of maintenance CAPEX and what's your level of flexibility to reach your 2027 leverage targets, please?

Thank you. yes you are you are right in France we do have a high leverage operational leverage in in cement we as well have a a large share of our activities, you will understand that this is quite sensible information. We do not disclose as is, but you can observe from the volume impact from the past years, the tremendous impact of volume fluctuation. In Senegal, indeed, as mentioned by Mr. Sidos earlier, The initial startup of the kiln was in June. It did ramp up very gradually and start to regularize a little bit in Q4. So the initial contribution comes out of Q4 only. So we do expect it to contribute more heavily and to have gradually improve both energy efficiency and alternative fuel increase. I remind you that as mentioned by Mr. Sidos during the presentation, the mid-term saving objective is 20 euros per ton of cement sold by the facility. On CAPEX, I believe I just gave the information to Tom, but indeed we do expect about half of our CAPEX to be maintenance, so roughly 140 to 150 million euros. Thank you very much.

As a reminder, if you wish to ask a question, please dial pound key five on your telephone keypad.

We have two questions, two written questions from Isaac Osio from Onfield Investment Research. So first question on the guidance. With price increase in France, savings from the new king in Senegal, strong Egyptian exports, and improving condition in Turkey, it seems organic EBDA growth in those regions will be more than slight. Does your guidance suggest a sharp EBDA drop in the U.S. and India, or is it simply conversatism earlier in the year with room to upgrade? I will hand it over to Man and Man for the answer.

Yeah, the answer is in the is in the question. Everything you said is a momentum way you said, but we are very cautious at this time of year. And guidance could be disappointed, but I would like to share a few comments. Guidance to side growth of sales and EBITDA on the life-for-life basis. which is an expression for cautious optimism of a positive orientation for main markets with an acceleration in H2. In France, you see, after stabilizing in H225, the residential market is expected to continue a soft landing with a gradual recovery from the 20-second world. We will have an unfavorable base of comparison in each one and the municipal elections are traditionally red-wind for construction. Material or quicker recovery will constitute an upside and we expect a positive price environment.

You were talking about other markets. I believe that the emerging markets should remain well oriented. Mediterranean, as you said. Senegal will benefit from the ramp-up of KIN6 during the full year, and India is expected to remain volatile in a growing market.

So at this time of the year, we stay cautious, but we'll have other opportunities during this year to be more precise with what happened actually.

Second question, how do you interpret the recent political comments in France and Germany around potentially lower CO2 prices and the ETS adjustment? What would lower CO2 price mean for your carbon capture strategy and long-term cash generation in France and Switzerland?

Well, there was...

In fact, nothing is changing on a short-term basis, and nothing is changing on a long-term basis. Things could change on a mid-term basis, as it changed in the past. And basically, it could be... positive for industry to decrease the rate of, to lower the rate of free quotas decrease. So, it will mean we'll have a little bit more means to fine-tune our strategy. As you know, we have cemented the US four levels to reduce its carbon footprint, modernization of equipments to do that, de-fossilization, It means we replace coal by wastes, and then lowering the clinker factor. And these three levers bring money. It's all together, it's a large part, a decent part of VCA and BDA. Then the last lever is CCS or CCU. For Vicar, the main project, as I said, is about Montalieu, and the decision will be taken at the end of 2027. So we have time to fine-tune things. What's happening now about quotas is, I would say, a regular adjustment of the European policy. And I feel it's positive for our industry if it's like what we think it will be.

The next question comes from Tom Jong from Barclays. Please unmute your microphone.

Yeah. Hi. Thanks for taking the follow up. The first one was just a follow up actually to that point on EU ETS. I hear what you're saying that, you know, perhaps not much is changing. And this is, as you say, a regular adjustment of policy. But ultimately, the CO2 prices declined by 25 percent in the last month. How has that change in EUA prices affected your via CCS decision making? And then the second question was just, could you speak a little bit about what you've seen in January and February so far? The run rate that we've had in Q1, how does that match against your pricing and volume assumptions, especially in France? Thank you.

Yes, Tom, thank you for your question. You know, for the Viag project, first of all, it's probably a first reminder on CO2 reduction objective for 2030. Are these only on the three first layers that Mr. Siddous presented, the traditional levels that have their own paybacks? We have said for a long time that CCS will contribute in a second step, in a longer run, notably because of a weaker economic model. Indeed, if carbon price comes down, that will probably lead to review the space of those projects. But we still are fully committed that those technologies will be needed to reach the 2050 ambition. It's not just a matter of time, which may create opportunities in terms of technologies as well. So that's the first point. Second point regarding current trends, that's very early in the year to give you comments on where we stand on pricing. I mean, we have announced them. We are, of course, getting them through, but January is never... is never a month you can extrapolate to the full year. So I will stay away from any comment.

Fair enough. Thank you. Thanks for the answers.

Thank you. There are no more questions at this time. So I hand the conference back to the speakers for the closing comments.

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us today. We look forward to seeing you at our annual journal meeting on the 10th of April in Ildabo, the beautiful department of ISER. Thank you very much. Have a nice day. Bye-bye.