VPA 52 - GHG Emission Reduction through use of Bondhu Chula (Improved Cook Stoves) in Bangladesh

Audit Analysis

A Gold Standard cookstove project in Bangladesh with VVB-confirmed additionality and a quantified 5% leakage deduction, but weakened by the absence of a buffer pool, a project-specific baseline with no documented reassessment, a contradictory FPIC record, and a long list of corrective actions. The verified ERR matches the claimed figure exactly for the 2022–2023 monitoring period, and the verified usage rate (0.98) exceeds the assumed rate (0.90), which is conservative. Overall a mid-range project with moderate data-reliability concerns.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠FPIC status is contradictory: the 2023 validation report records FPIC as conducted, while the 2024 verification report records it as not conducted — a fundamental safeguards gap if the later document is correct.
• ⚠The PoA duration of 28 years was challenged against the Gold Standard 20-year maximum and justified only via transition rules (CAR 02), creating regulatory uncertainty.
• ⚠The lifetime ex-ante ERR estimate is not stated in any document, preventing a pro-rata over/under-delivery check against the 523,571 tCO₂e verified for the first monitoring period.
• ⚠Multiple 'likely CARs' from the VVB remain open, including verification of unique serial numbers to prevent double counting of stoves across VPAs.

Credit Vintages