OREANDA-NEWS. Vodafone Group Plc (“Vodafone” or “the Group”) will adopt a number of new International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) which will be applicable for the year ending 31 March 2014; the most significant being IFRS 11 Joint arrangements (“IFRS 11”) and IAS 19 Employee Benefits (Revised) (“IAS 19 (Revised)”).  Since the standards require retrospective application, Vodafone is presenting today unaudited restated financial information prepared in accordance with IFRS 11 and IAS 19 (Revised) for the six months ended 30 September 2012 and the year ended 31 March 2012. Restated financial information for the year ended 31 March 2013 will be presented with the Group’s preliminary results announcement to be issued on or around  21 May 2013.

The Group will in future provide pro forma financial information, based on the Group’s previous joint venture accounting policy, for Group revenue, service revenue, EBITDA1, adjusted operating profit1 and free cash flow1, in addition to the statutory disclosures, to ensure continued comparability with previously presented financial information.

The principal impacts on Vodafone’s reported financial information as a result of adopting these two standards are:
IFRS 11 Joint Arrangements

The Group’s interests in Vodafone Italy, Vodafone Hutchison Australia, Vodafone Fiji and Indus Towers, the Group’s network infrastructure joint arrangement in India, will be incorporated into the consolidated financial statements using the equity method of accounting rather than proportional consolidation.

Whilst the change is presentational in nature and does not impact on the Group’s statutory profit for the financial periods, it does impact on a number of the Group’s disclosed financial metrics, including revenue, EBITDA1 and free cash flow1.
IAS 19 Employee Benefits (Revised)

Net interest cost replaces the expected return on plan assets and interest cost currently recorded in the consolidated income statement for defined benefit pension plans. The basis on which the charge is calculated will change, impacting the amounts recorded in the Group’s consolidated income statement and consolidated statement of comprehensive income, however, not impacting the amounts recorded on the Group’s consolidated statement of financial position.