VPA 81 - GHG Emission Reduction through use of Bondhu Chula (Improved Cook Stoves) in Bangladesh

Audit Analysis

This Gold Standard cookstove project in Bangladesh has verified additionality and a quantified 5% leakage deduction, but suffers from the absence of a buffer pool, a project-specific baseline, a contradictory FPIC record, and a large number of corrective actions. The verified emissions reductions match the claimed figure for the monitoring period, and the usage-rate assumption is conservative, but the lack of a lifetime ex-ante estimate and a challenged 28-year PoA duration limit confidence in the long-term claim. Multiple cross-document contradictions on key parameters (FNRB method, safeguards, leakage rate, crediting period) reduce overall data reliability.

Project Description

Red Flags

• ⚠No buffer pool is stated in any available document, leaving the project exposed to reversal risk if stoves are replaced with traditional cookstoves
• ⚠FPIC status is contradictory: the 2024 verification report records it as not conducted, while the 2023 validation report records it as conducted
• ⚠PoA duration of 28 years was challenged against the Gold Standard 20-year maximum; the project relies on transition rules to justify the longer period
• ⚠No lifetime ex-ante emissions reduction estimate was found in any document, preventing a pro-rata over- or under-delivery check
• ⚠The FNRB method is recorded as 'national default' in the 2024 verification report but 'local field' in the 2023 validation report, creating uncertainty about the actual emission factor basis

Credit Vintages