SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2024

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Summarized activity in the allowance for doubtful accounts

(millions)	2024		2023		2022
Beginning balance		$77.3		$71.9		$52.8
Bad debt expense		46.9		54.0		38.1
Write-offs		(51.0)		(46.2)		(21.1)
Other (a)		(3.2)		(2.4)		2.1
Ending balance		$70.0		$77.3		$71.9

(a) Other amounts are primarily the effects of changes in currency translations and acquired balances.

Changes in the carrying amount of goodwill

			Global		Global		Global
	Global		Institutional		Healthcare &		Pest
(millions)	Industrial		& Specialty		Life Sciences		Elimination		Other		Total
December 31, 2022		$4,081.8		$567.6		$3,125.4		$-		$237.9		$8,012.7
Segment change (a)		102.3		-		-		135.6		(237.9)		-
December 31, 2022 recast		4,184.1		567.6		3,125.4		135.6		-		8,012.7
Current year business combinations (b)		30.8		39.3		-		-		-		70.1
Effect of foreign currency translation		28.6		3.1		33.0		0.7		-		65.4
December 31, 2023		$4,243.5		$610.0		$3,158.4		$136.3		$-		$8,148.2
Current year business combinations (b)		116.2		6.5		-		33.9		-		156.6
Prior year business combinations (c)		1.2		-		-		-		-		1.2
Divestiture of businesses (d)		-		-		(305.9)		-		-		(305.9)
Effect of foreign currency translation		(56.0)		(3.3)		(32.7)		(0.8)		-		(92.8)
December 31, 2024		$4,304.9		$613.2		$2,819.8		$169.4		$-		$7,907.3

(a) Relates to reclassifications made to reportable segments in the current year. Effective January 1, 2024, the Company’s former Textile Care and Colloidal Technologies Group (“CTG”) operating segments are now part of the Water operating segment which continues to remain in the Global Industrial reportable segment. Additionally, the Pest Elimination operating segment, formerly aggregated with the Textile Care and CTG operating segments within Other, is now reported as the stand-alone Global Pest Elimination reportable segment. After these changes, the Company has eight operating segments aligned with eight reporting units. Refer to Note 18 for further information.

(b) Represents goodwill associated with current year acquisitions. For 2024, approximately $132 of goodwill related to businesses acquired is expected to be tax deductible related primarily to the acquisition of Barclay Water Management. For 2023, approximately $62 of goodwill related to businesses acquired is expected to be tax deductible related primarily to the acquisitions of Chemlink Laboratories LLC and Flottec, LLC. Refer to Note 4 for additional information.

(c) Represents purchase price allocation adjustments for acquisitions deemed preliminary as of the end of the prior year.

(d) Represents goodwill associated with the sale of the global surgical solutions business (refer to Note 4 for additional information).

Weighted-average useful life by type of asset

The weighted-average useful life by type of amortizable asset at December 31, 2024 were as follows:

(years)

Customer relationships	15
Patents	15
Trademarks	13
Other technology	12

Future estimated amortization expenses

(millions)
2022	$320
2023	307
2024	301
2025	293
2026	287
2027	165
2028	157
2029	149

Computations of the basic and diluted EPS

The computations of the basic and diluted earnings attributable to Ecolab per share amounts were as follows:

(millions, except per share)	2024		2023		2022
Net income attributable to Ecolab		$2,112.4		$1,372.3		$1,091.7
Weighted-average common shares outstanding
Basic		284.3		285.0		285.2
Effect of dilutive stock options and units		2.3		1.6		1.4
Diluted		286.6		286.5		286.6
Earnings attributable to Ecolab per common share
Basic EPS		$7.43		$4.82		$3.83
Diluted EPS		$7.37		$4.79		$3.81
Anti-dilutive securities excluded from the computation of diluted EPS		0.6		4.3		3.9
Amounts do not necessarily sum due to rounding.

Other significant accounting policies

Policy	Note
Fair value measurements	7
Derivatives and hedging transactions	8
Share-based compensation	10
Research and development expenditures	14
Legal contingencies	15
Pension and post-retirement benefit plans	16
Reportable segments	18

Schedule of new accounting pronouncements

New Accounting Pronouncements

Standards That Are Not Yet Adopted:
	Date of		Required Date of	Effect on the
Standard	Issuance	Description	Adoption	Financial Statements
ASU 2024-03 and ASU 2025-01 Income Statement - Reporting Comprehensive Income - Expense Disaggregation Disclosures (Subtopic 220-40): Disaggregation of Income Statement Expenses	November 2024	The amendments in this ASU are intended to improve expense disclosures, primarily by requiring disclosure of disaggregated information about certain income statement expense line items on an annual and interim basis.	Effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2026 and interim periods within annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2027, with early adoption permitted.	The updates required by this standard should be applied prospectively, but retrospective application is permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adoption and additional disclosure requirements.
ASU 2023-09 Income taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures	December 2023	The amendments in this Update require that public business entities on an annual basis (1) disclose specific categories in the rate reconciliation and (2) provide additional information for reconciling items that meet a quantitative threshold.	January 1, 2025	The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adoption and additional disclosure requirements.

Standards That Were Adopted:
	Date of		Date of	Effect on the
Standard	Issuance	Description	Adoption	Financial Statements
ASU 2023-07 - Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures	November 2023	The amendments in this ASU are to improve the disclosures about reportable segments and add more detailed information about a reportable segment’s expenses. The amendments in the ASU require public entities to disclose on an annual and interim basis significant segment expenses that are regularly provided to the chief operating decision maker (“CODM”) and included within each reported measure of segment profit or loss, other segment items by reportable segment, the title and position of the CODM, and an explanation of how the CODM uses the reported measures of segment profit or loss in assessing segment performance and deciding how to allocate resources. The ASU does not change the definition of a segment, the method for determining segments, the criteria for aggregating operating segments into reportable segments, or the current specifically enumerated segment expenses that are required to be disclosed.	January 1, 2024	The Company adopted the standard and applied the amendments retrospectively to all periods presented. Adoption of this standard impacted the disclosures within the financial statements, but did not have an impact on the Company's financial position or the results of operations.

No other new accounting pronouncement issued or effective has had or is expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.