GS1247 VPA 179 Zoba Debub Community Boreholes

Audit Analysis

The Zoba Debub Community Boreholes project (Gold Standard, Eritrea) has confirmed additionality via a combined test verified by the VVB and no reversal events, but is undermined by a significant baseline error (the original Baseline Water Boiling Test was invalidated due to kerosene use), a 0% leakage deduction that contradicts the PDD's 5% figure, and a usage-rate cap of 90% that is inconsistent with the 95% verified rate. The volume of material findings, corrective actions, and open forward action requests across multiple verification cycles signals persistent data-quality and documentation gaps that limit confidence in the 79,172 tCO₂e claim.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Original Baseline Water Boiling Test was anomalous (kerosene used to light fire), leading to an underestimated baseline; the value was corrected from 0.3 kg to 0.8892 kg and VPAs 65–70 had to be re-bundled to manage the resulting credit overage.
• ⚠Leakage deduction is 0% in the 2024 verification report ('deemed negligible') but the PDD (2023) specified a 5% deduction — an unexplained contradiction that weakens the leakage treatment.
• ⚠Usage rate is verified at 95% in the 2024 verification report, yet a material finding states the rate was 'capped at 90% due to BAMG changes' — the cap and the verified value are inconsistent.
• ⚠CL#01 in the 2024 verification report flags an inconsistency in total ERs between the MR table (80,911) and the ER sheet (79,172 tCO₂e), indicating internal data-quality problems.
• ⚠Multiple open Forward Action Requests (FAR 01–05) remain unresolved, including SDG indicator evaluation at VPA level, fNRB report submission, and justification of monitoring options.

Credit Vintages