Veer (NLBC) Small Hydro Power Project

Audit Analysis

The Veer (NLBC) Small Hydro Power Project is a VCS-registered renewable energy project with a sound additionality design (investment test confirmed by RINA SpA) and a jurisdictional grid-emission-factor baseline. However, the verification process surfaced numerous material findings—including a 16-month meter calibration gap, editorial errors, and missing monitoring records—that undermine confidence in the MRV chain. The project delivered roughly 133% of its pro-rata ex-ante expectation for the elapsed monitoring period, which is consistent with weather-driven over-generation in small hydro.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠Monitoring meters remained uncalibrated for approximately 16 months (Dec 2014 – Aug 2019), raising questions about the accuracy of generation data used in emission reduction calculations
• ⚠The verification report (2023-01-24) contains an internal contradiction on baseline method, listing both 'jurisdictional' and 'project' in the same document
• ⚠Grid emission factor differs by ~10% between the validation report (0.8895) and the monitoring report (0.9793), with no documented reconciliation
• ⚠Nine corrective action requests were raised during verification, including missing JMRs, invoices, logbooks, and calibration certificates, indicating weak monitoring record-keeping

Credit Vintages