BioLite Improved Cook stoves Programme - CPA 028 supported by Republic of Korea

Audit Analysis

The BioLite cookstove programme in Uganda has a sound additionality foundation (combined test confirmed by the VVB) and conservative emission factors, but is undermined by a very large volume of material findings and corrective actions, a project-specific baseline that is contradicted by the PDD, and the absence of any stated buffer pool. The project is delivering at or near its claimed reduction levels, yet the sheer number of documentation inconsistencies and missing evidence records significantly erodes confidence in the data chain.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Over 30 material findings and 20 corrective actions logged across the verification and monitoring cycle, including missing end-user databases, sales records, photos, and training records
• ⚠Baseline method is stated as 'project-specific' in the verification report but 'jurisdictional' in the PDD — an unresolved contradiction that affects the robustness of the reference case
• ⚠CORSIA eligibility and CCP status are both unstated, leaving dual-channel or double-claiming risk unassessed
• ⚠The monitoring report (Feb 2026) reports 180,153 tCO2e while the verification report (Dec 2025) reports 156,789 tCO2e for the same period — a 14% gap that the VVB attributed to a correction excluding non-ICS users, but the discrepancy between the two documents remains unexplained in the record

Credit Vintages