Hamhung Hydropower Plant No.1

Audit Analysis

A small hydro project in North Korea validated under CDM with a VVB-confirmed investment additionality test, but the record is undermined by four cross-document contradictions (baseline method, leakage justification, ERR figures, crediting period), 13 material findings with no recorded corrective actions, and the absence of a verified ERR figure. The physical nature of the hydro infrastructure limits permanence and greenwashing risk, yet the data-quality issues and missing safeguards documentation prevent a higher rating.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Two monitoring reports report materially different claimed ERR values (68,555 in the April 2017 report vs 23,547 in the May 2018 report) with no verified figure available to reconcile them
• ⚠13 material findings (CAR01–CAR10, CL01–CL03) were raised during verification, including missing investment-analysis parameters and a generator-type inconsistency, yet no corrective actions are recorded as required
• ⚠Baseline method is stated as 'jurisdictional' in the 2012 validation report but 'project' in the 2018 monitoring report, creating ambiguity about the actual baseline construction
• ⚠Grid emission factor of 0.8833 tCO₂/MWh is dated 2011 but applied to a 2017–2018 monitoring period, a seven-year gap with no updated factor documented

Credit Vintages