6.25 MW grid-connected Sattegala Mini Hydel Scheme at SLS Power Industries Ltd., in Chamarajanagar District, Karnataka

Audit Analysis

A 6.25 MW grid-connected mini-hydro project in Karnataka validated under CDM AMS-I.D. v18.0 with a jurisdictional baseline and combined additionality test. The project is structurally sound for its type, but the absence of any monitoring data, a seven-fold discrepancy between the PDD and validation report on estimated CERs, and the lack of a buffer pool or permanence safeguard create meaningful uncertainty about the robustness of the credit claims.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠The PDD (Feb 2022) estimates 170,436 CERs while the validation report (Mar 2022) validates only 24,348 — a 7× discrepancy that is not explained in the extracted record and raises over-crediting concerns in the original project design.
• ⚠No buffer pool or permanence safeguard is documented for a 7-year crediting period, leaving the project exposed to reversal risk from drought, dam failure, or operational changes with no credit backstop.
• ⚠No monitoring report or monitoring period data is present in the extracted record, so actual performance against the validated 24,348 CERs cannot be assessed.

Credit Vintages