Ecuador's Measuring, Reporting and Verification system for the Efficient Cooking Programme
By Christian Rene Parra Meneses, Ministry of Environment Ecuador / UNDP LECB Project Coordinator
Quito, Ecuador. Ecuador’s Ministry of Environment has developed and implemented the first Measuring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) system for a mitigation action in the country. The digital platform has been specifically created for the Efficient Cooking Program (Programa de Cocción Eficiente – PCE) NAMA which seeks to replace the use of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) cook stoves through induction cook stoves, taking advantage of the clean hydropower produced in the country.
The development of the Efficient Cooking Programme NAMA, including its MRV system, was supported by the UNDP Low Emission Capacity Building (LECB) Programme through contributions by the European Union, the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB), and the Australian Government. The presentation of the digital platform (http://pecnama.azurewebsites.net/) was held on March 28th and 29th at UNDP's Country Office in Quito. It was attended by local technicians and authorities from public institutions involved in the management of this new tool.
Christian Parra, LECB coordinator in Ecuador, said that this is the first time the country has a tool that allows one to calculate Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emissions, quantify benefits, store information, generate reports and demonstrate the country's efforts to fight climate change.
A Company EC & Pty Ltd. was hired to develop the system, including the conceptual design and the technological tool to report the GHG emissions reductions and associated sustainable development benefits. During the event, experts from EC & Pty and specialists from the Ministry of Environment presented the design of the tool, as well as the international policy framework regarding MRV, remarking the fact that the present system is one of the first in its class in Latin America.
Carlos Dávila, National Director of Energy Efficiency at the Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy explained the progress achieved by the Efficient Cooking Program so far, aiming to replace about 3 million – or all residential - gas cook stoves with induction cook tops while simultaneously replacing gas water heaters with electric water systems. To date, more than 2.2 million cooktops have been sold.
One of the main conclusions of the presentation was that the platform, through its modular design, can be expanded to many other mitigation actions, not only in the energy sector, but also in the other sectors considered in Ecuador’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). In this regard, planning needs to be done in order to analyze the possibility of building on this MRV system to develop a national, comprehensive NDC MRV system in Ecuador.
Through the implementation of the NAMA, Ecuador is estimated to achieve an average reduction of 2.66 million tCO2-eq. per year in the period from 2014-2030, while freeing up vital government funding from energy cost savings for social development programs. Ecuador imports as much as 80% of its LPG to meet domestic demands, of which 92% is consumed by households for cooking and heating purposes.
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