Enabling Access to Sustainable Energy

Project details

006 Cookstoves - ICS Development in line with commercialized approach

Project partner

RCEE Vietnam
PED Vietnam

Project status

Completed 2008

Project description

The Vietnam Improved Cookstove (ICS) Program has been carried out for 10 years. The programme was normally integrated within local NGO’s development projects and about 50,000 fixed ICS were built. The common implementing steps are subsidized approach and 100% of ICS were fixed and 1-2- type designed.
Since October 2006 PED has implemented the commercialized ICS development program in Thanh Hoa province with fund financed by EASE. After three months of implementation, the project’s gained successful points are subscribed as follows:
In terms of fixed stove:

Twelve types of ICS were introduced to local people in districts of Ha Trung and Hau Loc of Thanh Hoa province of which three types were chosen as favourite by the local people: DK 1-1, DK 2-2 and DK 3-2.
867 fixed ICS were built and 100 portable stoves were sold in 5 communes.
In the communes, a total of 39 builders/technicians were trained on ICS building techniques, social marketing and market development skills. At present, the builders are able to find and develop the market by themselves in order to supply services at three different levels, respectively as 1. Technical consulting service; 2. Technical service (i.e. client buys relevant materials, builder supplies masoning service); and 3. Package service (i.e. builder supplies both materials and masoning).

From January 2007 to July 2007 the 39 technicians have only constructed about 50 cookstoves, which on average are two per technician. This number is below expectations.
Reason why this happened is that technicians of only five communes were trained, on average eight per commune and some are not operational anymore. Therefore we have trained too many persons in one commune. (NB If on average a commune has 500 inhabitants and if 200 ICS have been sold in one commune than about 40% of the households might be close to the market potential).

The new strategy is to train only four technicians in new communes, of which we expect that two will continue. The experience is that technicians perform better in a group of two, because customers often also request to modify and improve other parts of their house: especially their kitchen.

Further, a problem is that most builders cannot carry out their work in other communes but their home and adjacent ones because their service charge will be higher due to travelling and costs for transportation of materials. On the other hand, perhaps more importantly commune people wouldn’t like to invite other-commune builders for supplying ICS service. An exception is that some showed to be able to enter in new neighbouring communities where they had relatives of friends.

Therefore we will give a small follow up training to the existing technicians on how to enter into new communes. As an extra the formed groups of two technicians will each get access to a promotional budget per commune. This amount can be used only in new neighbouring communes and will be effectively on average a discount of about €1.5 (10-15%) for the first 80 units installed. The group will then decide how to apply the categories of promotion.

We decided to apply the same promotional strategy in the new communes for new technicians not use within the new communes for mouth to mouth advertisement.

In 2007, we will have two different cost reduction mechanisms

models of commercialized ICS development program were already existed for study tour, and
trained builders are employed as trainers for saving cost.

However, different areas will have different sources of fuel biomass, cooking behaviours, kitchen’s location and design (e.g. cooking indoor with separate kitchen or in stilted houses...) and different materials, so applicable building techniques and ICS designs are requested. Trained builders will not be able to train other trainers outside their areas when design and techniques are completely different from the ones in their own areas, in such case the trained builders will not be able trainers any more. Thus, the five communes therein the project has been carried out in 2006 those are in step 2of Ease’s strategy

In 2007, the PED will focus on three provinces as follows, two with support form MFS and one with support form Oxfam Hong Kong

Thanh Hoa, with Hau Loc districts (expanding to 3 new communes). These communes are in two geographic areas of delta, and coastal. This investment is necessary due to objectives as i) continuing to consolidate the 2006’s results; ii) expanding to other areas with natural condition diversity and different cooking behaviours and further development of rice-husk stove, and iii) strengthening the builders’ technical and marketing abilities (capacity building) so that they can promote to step 2 of the EASE’s strategy within the districts in 2008 and beyond.
Thai Nguyen, 5 new communes of Phu Luong district (Tam Dao National Park’s buffer zone). This is semi-mountainous area. This investment is necessary due to objectives as i) Thai Nguyen is lied in northern mountainous region of Vietnam and very potential in ICS commercialization; ii) Phu Luong district has specific conditions of both semi- and mountainous regions, with ethnic people, protecting of forestry resources, demands of tea leaf drier stove, so implementation of the project herein should be a big challenge but also many good lessons should be learnt for expanding the ICS program to other semi- and mountainous provinces of northern Vietnam onwards.
NOTE: PED starts implementing the same approach in another province financed by another funder (Oxfam-Hong Kong) Nghe An, with Thanh Chuong district (implementing in two communes of which there will have indigenous people and re-settling ones (i.e. 1,700 households resettled therein from the Government’s project of Hydro-electricity Plan building regions). The ethnic minorities thereof are Thai and Kh’mu. This investment is necessary due to objectives as i) testing the ICS commercial program in mountainous areas with ethnic people; ii) contributing to support resettlers and help them to stabilize their lives and acquaintance with new-designed houses, kitchens with ICS. If this model is successful then it will be replicated to other resettled regions with more than half of millions of households throughout the country. Source of Fund for all activities in Thanh Chuong should be financed by another organization (Oxfam Hong Kong).

Learning questions

Test technical performance to better understand the benefit
Find the most suitable and preferred cook stoves in new province (actually 3 in existing provinces)
Test the expansion strategy (will customers buy and technicians build cook stoves without discount)
Test monitoring protocol suitable for CDM.
Test performance of existing technicians that are continuing without support