Improved Cooking Stoves in Bangladesh – CPA No.13 “SZ Consultancy Services Ltd.”

Audit Analysis

This Gold Standard improved cooking stove project in Bangladesh shows a functional MRV framework with a 5% quantified leakage deduction and no reversal events, but is significantly undermined by the 2024 verification report's failure to confirm additionality, 14 cross-document contradictions (including FPIC status and CORSIA eligibility), and an extensive list of 16+ material findings with multiple unresolved corrective actions. The project delivered approximately 96% of its pro-rata annual expectation, but the conditional CORSIA eligibility and project-specific baseline limit confidence in the credit's robustness.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Additionality was confirmed by the VVB in the 2022 verification report but is NOT confirmed in the 2024 verification report, and the specific additionality test type is not stated in any available document
• ⚠14 contradictions between documents, including FPIC (PDD says conducted, 2024 VR says not conducted), CORSIA eligibility (2024 VR says eligible, a May 2024 note says 'will not be marked CORSIA eligible until further notice'), and the crediting period dates
• ⚠16+ material findings in the 2024 verification report, including missing sales receipts, training certificates, operation manuals, blank survey fields, and inconsistencies between the ER worksheet, monitoring report, and submitted documents
• ⚠Usage rate was assumed at 100% in the ex-ante estimate but verified at only 98%, indicating a 2% over-estimation of actual stove utilization

Credit Vintages