GS1247 VPA 5 Alebtong District Borehole Project

Audit Analysis

The Alebtong District Borehole Project (GS2481) is a Gold Standard energy-efficiency project displacing thermal energy for water heating in Uganda. While additionality is VVB-confirmed and no reversal events have occurred, the project is undermined by a significant leakage contradiction (0% in the 2026 verification report versus 5% in the PDD), the absence of a buffer pool, substantial operational failures (1,698 failure days, five boreholes removed from crediting), and a high volume of unresolved documentation inconsistencies across 12 identified contradictions.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Leakage deduction dropped from 5% in the PDD (2023) to 0% in the 2026 verification report with only a 'deemed negligible' justification, creating an over-crediting risk of up to 5% of all claimed reductions
• ⚠No buffer pool is in place despite 1,698 recorded failure days (83% operationality) and five boreholes removed from crediting during the monitoring period, leaving no financial backstop for potential reversals
• ⚠FPIC status is contradictory: the 2024 monitoring report states it was not conducted, while the 2025 validation report states it was conducted — a fundamental free, prior, and informed consent issue for a community water project
• ⚠The verified ERR dropped from 10,746 tCO₂e (January 2025 verification) to 3,058 tCO₂e (May 2026 verification), a 71% reduction, driven by borehole removals but raising questions about the durability of the project's emission claims
• ⚠Twelve contradictions were identified across documents, including conflicting crediting period dates, fNRB methods (national default vs. local field), and usage monitoring approaches (annual survey vs. assumed), indicating systemic data-reliability concerns

Credit Vintages