Fajina Geothermal Based Space Heating System

Audit Analysis

The Fajina geothermal space-heating project in Zhengzhou has a VVB-verified combined additionality test and delivered 84.1% of its PDD estimate, indicating no over-crediting. However, the project suffers from a project-specific baseline with no stated reassessment cadence, a 0% leakage deduction justified only as 'deemed negligible,' no buffer pool, and an extensive list of over 40 corrective actions and clarifications raised by the VVB, reflecting significant MRV data-quality weaknesses. Multiple contradictions between documents—including a 5-year versus 20-year crediting period and conflicting FPIC records—further erode confidence in the underlying data.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Over 40 corrective actions and clarifications were raised by the VVB, including grid emission factors not sourced from the latest published data, missing cross-checks for key parameters (heating area, flow rate, temperature difference), and inconsistencies with the PDD
• ⚠Crediting period contradicts between the verification report (2021–2025, 5 years) and the monitoring report (2022–2042, 20 years); the 20-year figure appears erroneous but undermines confidence in the monitoring record
• ⚠No buffer pool percentage is stated in any available document, leaving permanence risk unquantified for a project whose geothermal supply could theoretically be interrupted
• ⚠Leakage deduction is 0% with only a 'deemed negligible' justification; the monitoring report characterises leakage as 'quantified' while the verification report calls it 'deemed negligible', creating ambiguity
• ⚠FPIC status is contradictory: the validation report (2022) records it as conducted, while the stakeholder consultation document (2020) records it as not conducted

Credit Vintages