Improved Cookstove Implementation in Nepal.

Audit Analysis

A VCS cookstove project in Nepal with VVB-verified additionality and a quantified 5% leakage deduction, but undermined by a project-specific baseline, five cross-document contradictions, and nine corrective action requests raised during validation. The project delivered roughly 74% of its pro-rata ex-ante expectation for the monitoring period, which is conservative, yet the unresolved fNRB method discrepancy and missing usage-rate data leave material uncertainty in the credit calculation.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Five contradictions between the PDD and validation/verification reports span ERR figures, additionality test type, fNRB method, and crediting-period start date, indicating inconsistent project documentation.
• ⚠Nine corrective action requests and two clarification requests were raised during joint validation and verification, covering thermal efficiency values, fNRB calculation, additionality demonstration, and monitoring parameters — all closed but signalling significant initial methodological gaps.
• ⚠The fNRB method is stated as a national default (0.86) in the validation report but as a local field measurement in the PDD, and a material finding explicitly flags a 'lack of assessment and information on calculation of fNRB.'
• ⚠Usage rate (both assumed and verified) is not stated in any available document, leaving a key input to the ERR calculation unverified.

Credit Vintages