Good morning. This is the conference operator. Welcome, and thank you for joining the Carbios 2023 full year results presentation. As a reminder, all participants are in listen-only mode. After the presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. Should anyone need assistance during the conference call, they may signal an operator by pressing star and zero on their telephone. At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Pascal Bricout, CFO, and Emmanuel Ladent, CEO of Carbios. Please go ahead.
Well, thank you very much, and welcome, everybody. I'm very pleased to present you our results for 2023. 2023 was, indeed, a very exciting year for Carbios development. So, we had several good news. The first major milestones we achieved in 2023 was a signing of an exclusive strategic agreement with Novozymes today. Today, Novozymes is the largest enzyme producer in the world, and we have confirmed that Novozymes will produce Carbios enzymes and distribute Carbios enzymes for our first plant in France, but for all the future plants, licensing plants we will open in the world. So that was a very significant milestone for this exclusive partnership with Novozymes. Let's move on, please.
We also had confirmation from the French state through the France 2030 program and from the region where we are building the plant, which is the Grand Est region in the northeast of France, that we will receive significant non-dilutive subsidies. A total of EUR 54 million has been granted to Carbios. This amount of subsidies would come in the coming years. Most of it would come in the coming years through the milestones we are of construction of the plant. But we are very pleased to have this these subsidies, which is definitely a strong support and which shows the commitments of the French government to support Carbios.
We have here a video of Mr. Macron, the French president, who testified his support to Carbios in December 2023. I don't know if we can put the video.
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The contractualization of the De Sme t company has been done to be able to build the plant. So the plant will have, I remind everyone, we will have a capacity of 50,000 tons of PET feedstocks, plastic and textile in that plant. The plant is located in the Longlaville city, which is at the border of Luxembourg, but on the French side, in the Grand Est region, and we will operate with five shifts, 24 hours. That's creating about 150 new jobs between direct and indirect jobs.
So everything is running on schedule for this first plant, which will deliver significant volumes to our brand owners, to our customers in 2026. In terms of feedstock, which is an important part of securing the plant outcome, we have already contracted interesting contracts with Citeo in France for the food trays, and we also announced a contract recently with a German group, Landbell, to supply also some and to innovate on plastic feedstocks. At this stage, Carbios has secured 70% of the feedstocks needed for Longlaville, and we continue to work on securing the full capacity for the time we will start the operation. In terms of licensing, things are progressing well. I just want to remind you that we have several targets. We are talking to PET producers across the globe.
They are the most interested in our technology because we are the only technology which is fully plug-and-play to the PET production. We also are talking to chemical groups, which are very interested in one of the two monomers we are producing, which is PTA, terephthalic acid, and we have also some interest from waste management companies, sometimes some brand owners directly or some sovereign funds in certain countries. So the key targets are there. The main targets we have developed very, very strongly are the PET producers and the chemical groups. Let's move on, please. So today, we have put some commercial presence in most of the key countries for the PET, our PET markets.
We have Carbios people in many countries, in the U.S., in North America, in China, in Korea, in Japan, in Taiwan, and we are covering Europe, and there are many countries where we have already advanced discussions for the licensing of our technology. Let's move on. So just to remind everyone, the way Carbios' revenues are going to be generated beyond the revenues from the first plant in Longlaville, which is a bit particular because we will be the majority shareholder of that plant. For the remaining part on licensing, we have three pillars of revenues. One is the licensing, contracting the licensing upfront model, which generate upfront revenues for Carbios when we sign licensing and when we commission the plants for the licensees.
Then when the plants of the licensees are operating, we have two big pillar of revenue: one on the enzyme, which is a kickback from Novozymes, on the selling the enzyme, which is the IP of Carbios, and the second one is, the royalties we get from the licensees on the fact that they get a, a premium, on the, on the selling, selling the Carbios products. So that's the way the structure of revenue has been published already in our strategic update 2026, and that's the way these revenues are modelized, by the analyst following Carbios. So let's move on.
So this is the vision of the revenue split of Carbios between 2026 and 2035. As you can see, we have at the beginning of Carbios significant revenues coming from the green bar, which are the revenues coming from the first plant. And also, the upfront revenues, as I mentioned, which is the revenues we get when we sign and when we start to operate the licensees' plants. Then with time, when the licensee plants will be operating, the royalty revenues will take over and will take the lion's share of our revenue, but we need, obviously, to have the plants operated before that, dark blue line is growing. So that's the vision on the revenues of Carbios. One point I want to mention also is our biodegradation business, which is Carbios Active, is starting very positively.
We have got the food grade approval in North America, and that's really the starting milestones to start revenue on this activity. This is the right bar on the graph. So in terms of innovation, we have announced several key milestones as well. We did a publication on the microfluidics, which is a technology that we have adapted to the plastic depolymerization, and basically, which allow us to test a million of enzymes in a few hours a nd this technology is used in other industries, but has been adopted by Carbios, and it's a true acceleration. At the beginning of Carbios, we were testing only a few hundred enzymes a day. Right now, we are able to test millions of enzymes a day, so that's a significant milestone for the development of future enzymes. Next slide, please.
We also had significant publications. In March 2023, we had a publication in Chemical Reviews on the work we did on our enzymes, and this is one of the most influential scientific journals in the world. And in October, we had a publication on the comparisons of the Carbios enzyme compared to other enzymes which were published by other laboratories, and which shows that there is a significant advantage for Carbios enzyme compared to any academic work which has been done so far. Our enzyme is 40 x more efficient than any other ones in term of industrial application. So that was published in ACS Catalysis.
So what are the milestones for, we have achieved and we will achieve? So in term of, 2023, I will not repeat, but we had the textile line, which has started its operation. We had the first feedstock contract and the start of the construction. In 2024, we will complete the staffing, the key staffing of the plant. All the key people of the plant will be hired, and starting their training. In 2023, we started to staff North America, and actually, we were in advance on our milestones because we have already staffed Asia already in 2023. We said we would sign our first agreements on license in 2024. We are on path of doing that.
We have major brand owners' agreements on the rPET volumes, which will be signed in 2024. We will open new consortiums in other industries beyond the one we have already in packaging and in textile. We will have new consortiums of players in other industries. And we will start the sales of our Carbios Active PLA biodegradation solution in North America. In terms of R&D, in 2024 we will patent some enzyme work on new polymers. And as we have announced earlier, we are working beyond PET and PLA. We are working, for instance, on polyamides and on the polyolefins.
We will also organize the second round of our Scientific Summit, where we organize a meeting, a several-day meetings, with all the key scientists in the world working on plastic depolymerization through enzymatic solutions. In terms of ESG, we have already achieved the percentage of independent board members, and we will propose to the next general assembly one more lady to join the board so that we will be at above 40% female board member presence. This year, we are finalizing the ISO 14001 and 9001 for all our operations, and we will also get first circular LCA published in 2024. That's the key milestones we are on track to get for 2024.
So now I lend the floor to our CFO, Pascal Bricout, to come back on the results for 2023.
Thank you, Emmanuel. Good morning, everybody. So before looking at numbers in this four slides, the key elements that drive the accounts this year are, number one, the capital increase of EUR 133 million net, realized in July 2023. Number two is we get the permit for the Longlaville plant in October, then we start to invest in this project. You will see that in the account. And then the third point is that the cash burn is under control. So let's start with the asset side, and you see that, the tangible assets increased by around EUR 25 million.
This is the acceleration of the Longlaville project once we get the permit in October, so it's a serious number of spending to be on track on the timing once we get this permit. Number two or number one in the footnotes is the goodwill. The goodwill is tested every year. This is the Carbios goodwill, the PLA activity goodwill, and that is confirmed in its substance for this closing and t hen you have the cash equivalents or cash on hand, which is now EUR 191 million, nearly EUR 192 million.
The major increase is coming from the capital increase we made in July, less the tangible asset investments and less the cash burn for the year. So if you go on the next slide, again, on the shareholder equity, the big movement is starting with the capital increase for this net value of EUR 133 million. And then you have the loss of the period, which is stable at EUR 27 million, and you will see that even on the cash burn perspective, is fairly under control. A few accounting variance is that we made, again, a leaseback operation for the demo facility. That's why the loans increased by around EUR 4 million.
Then you have a few current liability, which represent the increase of the debt we have regarding a supplier for the tangible assets. If we can go on the next slide on the P&L. Yes. So you see that on the R&D, and I do prefer to look at the expense. So we were EUR 19 million last year. We are now EUR 18.8 million this year. This is fairly stable, but behind this stability, we have additional EUR 1 million, who is now subsidized directly to our academic partner to work on project sponsored by Carbios.
So if you want to make the full scope of what is spent for Carbios technology is, this year is EUR 20 million, is EUR 18.8 million + around EUR 1 million. And then we have the subsidies, which is basically tax incentive. And also we have the capitalization of the cost. Last year, we have capitalized EUR 1.2 million. This year is nearly double, because last year we start mid-year, because of the IFRS trigger point that allow Carbios to start to capitalize, mid-2022 only.
If you go on the marketing and selling expenses is EUR 1.5 million +, moving from EUR 4.3 million to EUR 5.8 million, and 50% of this increase is all the staffing effort that was made last year, with a full year effect this year, and also additional people to cover the globe to sell our technology on a global scale in more than 20 countries, and I think Emmanuel showed you the map in the previous slide.
On the what is named general admin expenses, we have about EUR 3.3 million increase from EUR 8.8 million to EUR 12.1 million, and 50% of this increase is a full year effect, again, of recruitment we made late in the year in 2022 to start to structure the company better in all respects. Plus, a big effort this year to support the construction of the Longlaville plant and all the function that is needed around this project, including consulting services.
These have been said, so operating expenses increased by something like EUR 2.8 million, and this is covered by the financial income that moved from a loss, EUR 1.6 million to a profit EUR 1.6 million, because we put all our cash from July 2023 in short-term vehicles without any risk and very liquid a nd then we come up with a variance of EUR 3.2 million year-on-year. And then that ends with the EUR 27 million losses, same as last year. If we go on the cash, then it will be a fairly exhaustive summary of the big change. If you go on the next one, yes. So on the operating activity, again, we are under control on the cash is EUR 22 million.
Investing activity is the effect of starting to invest in Longlaville from October 2022. And then financing activities, the big number is coming from the not only the revenues, but also the capital increase, cash that we received in July 2023. I think that's it for the for the financials. So I think we can leave the floor to questions.
This is the conference operator. We will now begin the question -and -answer session. Anyone who wishes to ask a question may press star and one on their touchtone telephone. To remove yourself from the question queue, please press star and two. Please pick up the receiver when asking questions. Anyone who has a question may press star and one at this time.
So it seems we have a question. What? So there is a question in the chat on: "When do we expect to generate revenues with Carbios Active x Carbios?" So as I mentioned in the milestones, we expect we have contracts under discussions right now in the U.S., and we expect to generate revenues in 2024 from the first delivery of Carbios Active in the U.S. and "Can we give a range of revenues?" I showed on the graph that the Carbios Active will be important in 2026. The revenues for 2024 will really depend on the moment we start the delivery. So we will not publish at this stage a revenue estimate, and when we have the contracts finalized, we will obviously give some more, some more information at that time.
There is a question on "How do we expect operational expenses to increase in 2024?" Pascal, do you want to take that?
Yes, that will be in the range of EUR 5 million, plus five. Especially we made a strong push again on the R&D, that we have some project we cannot give detail because it's highly confidential and sensitive. We also do work on project with some brands, and we are also commercial activity with getting higher.
Thank you.
"Is the type of short-term vehicle is-
Repeat, repeat the question, Pascal, please.
Yes. "You put all the cash in short-term vehicles without any risk. It's like a savings and loan stuff." It's a 3%-4% yield. We can withdraw the money overnight. We have a lot of sort of a preference for ESG-type vehicles. Even the yield is a little bit lower, but we want to be consistent with our DNA.
And then there is a question, "How are you going to consolidate the JV with Indorama Ventures with your account?" So, Pascal, maybe you want to take it?
That would... At the moment, the way it is structured, it will be a full consolidation. But we need to make a full comprehensive review by the auditors once the contract will be fully finalized.
"When will you receive the non-convertible loan from Indorama Ventures into the JV?" So I think, the negotiation on the detailed contract with Indorama Ventures is ongoing. So, Indorama Ventures has done a very extensive due diligence of the technology. Their conclusions are extremely positive. Their chairman, Mr. Aloke Lohia, and their deputy CEO, have visited our installation at the end of 2023. They have expressed their strong confidence in the Carbios technology, and last week, Indorama Ventures has positively visited the enzyme production site of Novozymes in Denmark, and they were very satisfied with the results. The ongoing information on the JV structure and loan with Indorama Ventures will come, when it's possible to communicate.
So there is a question on, "Could you comment on the several partnerships considered as feasible license in 2024? For how long you have been in touch with those players, regional breakdown, et cetera?"
So we are confident to sign several partnerships projects in 2024 for the licensing of our bio recycling technology. Licensing a technology takes between 18-24 months, and so far, we have established initial contacts with numerous PET producers in the world. Our unique technology is creating a lot of interest due to its plug-and-play capabilities, the low carbon impact of our production, the capability to process fiber to fiber polyester textile, and its easiness to operate. Its capacity to access to inexpensive feedstocks, such as food trays or textile, and the very high quality of the monomers we produce. We have several advanced discussions, and as soon as we can communicate on those, we will obviously communicate on it. But once again, we are confident to sign several partnerships in 2024.
So there's a question: "Has Indorama contract been signed?" So I just want to remind that the contract, non-binding, has been signed in June 2023, and the negotiation of the detailed contracts are ongoing with Indorama. "What increase of cost do you expect of Carbios plastics in comparison to current plastic price?" This is a very difficult question to answer, because we need to put us in a dynamic of 2026, when we will have significant volumes on the market.
What is for sure is the recycled plastic demand is increasing due to regulations all over the world, and in particular, in Europe, with a 25% incorporation. And the very high demand for fiber-to-fiber solutions creates a huge demand for fiber-to-fiber so technologies. What makes Carbios competitive strong advantage is the access to feedstocks that cannot be processed by mechanical recycling, and in particular, food trays and polyester fibers. Feedstocks which are much less inexpensive than bottles. You need to know that bottle is making most of the recycled fiber goods today, and bottle waste price is going up in many geographies. So we believe the competitiveness of Carbios is increasing with the lack of bottles that is foreseen in the world.
"Could you comment on how many employees of Carbios are shareholders of the company, and how much they hold s ame for the management?" So we have recently done a program of shareholding access for the employees, which was 0.08% of the capital. So it's a small amount, but 88% of the employees of Carbios have become shareholders through that program. Some are independent shareholders, by the way, on their own. And the management owns also some shares by their own, and in terms of equity for the management, it's through performance shares that the management has a small part of the capital. I think we don't have any more questions, if I'm not wrong.
I would like to thank all of you for your interest in Carbios, and we will obviously keep you updated on the progress of Carbios and the key milestones that we plan to achieve in 2024. Thank you very much.
Thank you.