10. Goodwill and intangible assets with unlimited useful life

The following table shows a reconciliation of the carrying amounts of goodwill for the periods presented in the consolidated financial statements as of March 31, 2016:

The additions to goodwill of EUR 73.0 million include EUR 72.8 million from company acquisitions in the business year 2015/16. They also include an adjustment to the provisional purchase price allocation of Bathurst Rail Centre, Australia, from the previous year, due to an adaptation of pension obligations amounting to EUR 0.2 million.

Impairment tests for cash-generating units or groups of cash-generating units containing goodwill

Goodwill is allocated to the following cash-generating units or groups of cash-generating units:

With regard to the value in use, goodwill is reviewed for impairment applying the discounted cash flow method. The calculation is performed on the basis of cash flows of a five-year medium-term business plan as of the beginning of March. This medium-term business plan is based on historical data as well as on assumptions regarding the expected future market performance. The Group’s planning assumptions are extended to include sectoral planning assumptions. Intra-group evaluations are complemented by external market studies. The cash flows in the perpetual annuity are based on the assumption of country-specific growth derived from external sources. The capital costs are calculated as the weighted average cost of equity and the weighted average cost of borrowed capital and using the capital asset pricing model (weighted average costs of capital). The parameters used for determining the WACC are established on an objective basis.

For the purpose of comparability, the country risk premiums that were taken into account last year with a cash flow premium/discount have been included in the previous WACC values shown below.

Estimates and assumptions used to measure the recoverable amounts of cash generating units or groups of cash-generating units with a significant share of the voestalpine Group’s total goodwill include:

External market and economic forecasts for the sale of flat steel products in Europe were used for the five-year medium-term business plan of the Steel Division. Due to positive feedback from individual customer segments, some quality-related adjustments were made. The production plan reflects the sales forecasts. With respect to procurement, the assumptions regarding raw materials according to global market forecasts were taken as a basis for planning. The perpetual annuity is based on an expected growth rate of 1.25%. The pre-tax WACC is 7.56% (2014/15: 7.23%).

The five-year medium-term business plan for High Performance Metals (HPM) Production was prepared under consideration of both the strategic orientation and the regional conditions in the core markets and reflects the general economic environment of the most important industry segments for the companies. The internal forecasts and estimates – in particular with regard to the components business that targets sophisticated metallurgical applications in the aerospace, oil and natural gas, energy engineering, and automotive industries – rely on external sources of information and are largely consistent with them. Planning included the assumption that the demand in the oil and natural gas industries will remain at a low level, with a slight increase starting in 2017/18. In the aerospace industry, a trend of uninterrupted growth was assumed. Changes in the cost of input materials due to the price of alloys can mostly be passed on to customers. The last plan year was used to calculate the perpetual annuity based on a growth factor of 1.74%. The pre-tax WACC is 9.72% (2014/15: 7.79%).

The planning for Value Added Services was based on both the general economic environment of the relevant industry segments as well as the growth forecasts in the regional sales markets. The different levels of economic development in the different regions will be counteracted using the appropriately formulated strategies and measures. The consolidation of the value creation chain that had already been initiated in the past, the consistent continuation of tried and tested cost-cutting and optimization programs, as well as new initiatives such as the further tightening of administrative workflows throughout the entire supply chain have played a positive role in the planning. Changes in material costs due to alloy prices can also be passed on to the market through so-called “alloy surcharges.” The perpetual annuity begins with the fifth plan year and is based on a growth factor of 1.51%. The pre-tax WACC is 10.02% (2014/15: 8.26%).

The planning process of Turnout Systems was based on the five-year medium-term business plan and market forecasts of the individual companies. The planning also reflects their expectations with respect to the development of their respective general market environment and the volume of their customers’ estimated demand. With regard to the most important factor cost developments, general forecasts of the development of personnel expenses and internal assumptions on the development of steel prices were integrated into the budgets. The perpetual annuity begins with the fifth plan year and is based on a growth factor of 1.51%. The pre-tax WACC is 8.94% (2014/15: 8.20%).

In addition to the generally applicable forecasts for economic growth in the relevant core markets, in particular the development and potential in the focus industries defined for the segment were taken into account for the five-year medium-term business plan for Welding Consumables. The discounted cash flow method used in the course of the impairment tests is applied using a perpetual annuity based on the last planning period. A growth factor of 1.36% was applied for the perpetual annuity. The pre-tax WACC is 8.70% (2014/15: 8.20%).

The cash flow forecasts for Automotive Body Parts are based on the regional growth forecasts and/or the medium-term production forecasts for the pan-European automobile market, particularly for the European premium brand automakers. Internal estimates correspond approximately to forecasts from outside the Group, as well as market dynamics, and was adjusted corresponding to the model portfolio for Automotive Body Parts. The fifth plan year was used to calculate the perpetual annuity based on a growth factor of 1.15%. The pre-tax WACC is 9.19% (2014/15: 7.42%).

The five-year medium-term business plan for Precision Strip was prepared under consideration of the general regional conditions in the core markets and reflects the general economic environment of the most important industry segments for the companies. For the most part, internal estimates are based on external forecasts and were adjusted very slightly downward. The last plan year was used to calculate the perpetual annuity based on a growth factor of 1.24%. The pre-tax WACC is 9.00% (2014/15: 7.28%).

The value of all goodwill was confirmed by the impairment tests. A sensitivity analysis showed that all carrying amounts would still be covered if the interest rate were to rise by one percentage point and there is no need to recognize an impairment loss. Furthermore, the cash flow sensitivity analysis showed that if the cash flows are reduced by 10%, all carrying amounts are still covered and there is no need to recognize an impairment loss. A combined sensitivity analysis of the goodwill-carrying units described above showed that, with an increase of the discount rate by one percentage point and a reduction in cash flow of 10%, the carrying amounts with three exceptions (High Performance Metals Production, Automotive Body Parts and Precision Strip) are still covered.

The following table shows the carrying amount coverage as well as the amount by which both major assumptions would have to change for the estimated recoverable amount to become equal to the carrying amount:

Intangible assets with unlimited useful life

The following cash-generating units and groups of cash-generating units contain intangible assets with indefinite useful lives:

Intangible assets with indefinite useful lives contain solely trademark rights. The period, during which these trademark rights are expected to generate cash flows is not subject to a foreseeable limit. Therefore, trademark rights do not depreciate and are not amortized.