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Introducing Improved Cookstoves          
CFSP is developing and promoting improved cookstoves because of the significant contribution that they make to wood energy savings. This page introduces the vast amount of research and experience that CFSP has, specifically outlining:  
Wood Energy Savings Gained From Improved Cookstoves    
Given Cambodia’s reliance on wood energy, reducing the nation’s consumption of wood & charcoal will move the country nearer to sustainable use of it’s fuelwood resources.

Research indicates that household cooking and palm sugar production consume the most wood energy. Significantly improving the efficiency of the stoves used in these activities will reduce the amount of wood energy used. Studies indicate that by 2006, use of improved cook stoves can cut Cambodia’s consumption of charcoal by 40%, or about 23,000 tonnes per year.

For this reason, a major part of CFSP’s work is related to the development and effective dissemination of improved cookstoves.

CFSP Phase One              
During phase one of our work, CFSP worked with CEDAC and drew together 18 other institutions interested in wood energy issues, forming the Wood Energy Network of Cambodia ( please see www.wenetcam.net )
Type Users Fuel
Qty
Twin Stove Rural Households Wood
4,789
New Lao
Bucket Stove		 Urban households Charcoal
11,133
Palm Sugar Stove Palm sugar producers Wood / biomass
2,198
Samaki Stove Rural Households Wood
334
Institutional Stove Institutions Wood
9

Through this network CFSP were able to train 58 ICS technicians and over 100 extension workers. 18,000 improved cookstoves were disseminated with an estimated usage rate of 70%. Use of these stoves will save 37500 tonnes of firewood each year and reduce CO2 emissions by 53,000 tonnes.

Please also read about how CFSP trains ICS Stove Producers.
Introducing CFSP Phase Two            
One of the aims of our 4 year phase 2 programme is to see 150,000 households adopt improved cookstoves. This would lead to a total saving of 2,210,000 tonnes of fuelwood and the creation of around 90 jobs for stove producers, over a ten year period. Attention is focused on ares of high population density and where supplies of wood are scarce.

In addition to household stove users, CFSP aims to facilitate the construction of 20,000 owner-built stoves by providing technical assistance to palm sugar producers and institutions. 30 technicians and 50 extension workers will be trained to continue this work in rural areas.

Work is also underway to develop a high capacity stove for urban street food vendors, and where appropriate, CFSP is encouraging further fuel wood saving in small industrial activities by promoting the substitution of LPG fuel use or the use of alternative charcoals or biomass gas.
Research & Development            
Improving Stove Design & Efficiency

CFSP has set-up a laboratory in Phnom Penh where stove designs can be developed. Here we can accurately monitor the change in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. This data enables us to experiment and optimize stove design for greatest fuel efficiency.

A basic field laboratory has been devised to enable the production centres to test their stoves. And this is backed up by extensive field research to verify with the end user the actual fuelwood savings that the stoves give.

Research continues to optimize the design of sugar palm stoves.

Please refer to the ICS Design page for an overview of the different stoves in use in Cambodia, including the improved cookstoves, with usage and efficiency statistics.

Developing Stove Production Techniques
ICS design parameters, dimensions, grate design, etc must be maintained for the stoves fuel efficiency to be realised. And for the stoves to be viable commercially, production costs must be kept to a minimum.

CFSP has worked with producers to help standardize and speed up stove production. Specific focus has been given to:

  • stove moulds;
  • mechanical tools that assist with tasks such as grate production
  • optimizing the clay mix
  • design of kilns for firing the stoves
Dissemination - Supporting Commercialisation      

CFSP has successfully promoted the adoption of improved cookstoves, primarily by working with stove producers. Once the producers understand the benefits of the stoves and know how to manufacture them, they distribute them to their customers down their existing commercial channels. The economic benefits to the end users, middlemen and the producers maintain the stove's popularity over the long term. Research shows that people convert to using improved cookstoves having seen one in use at a neighbour's house.

CFSP's role has been to support the commercial process, providing training to producers, encouraging collaboration between those involved in stove production and distribution and to educate the public about the benefits of the stoves.

Drawing on lessons learned in the Philippines, CFSP has performed outdoor cooking demonstrations at provincial market towns to raise public awareness about the improved cookstoves.
New Lao Bucket Stove

The New Lao Bucket Stove (NLBS) has sold successfully in the domestic market with 40,000 units sold since 2000. The stove, which is particularly suited to charcoal, often the preferred fuel in urban areas, is manufactured at 21 different production centres. By 2005 a total of 30 centres will produce the stove and production of the NLBS should be sufficient to supply all households using charcoal, reducing significantly the pressure on Cambodia's natural forest.
Year
No. of
Producers
Annual Capacity per producer

Annual Sales
No. of stoves in use
No. of charcoal using households
Total Outreach of NLBS
2000 11 100
1000
 1000 92,000 1%
2001 21 200
2,400
 3,400 93,840 4%
2002 21 600
12,000
 14,400 95,717 15%
2003 21 1,200
24,000
 36,000 97,631 37%
2004 21 2,000
42,000
 66,000 99,585 66%
2005 30 2,000
60,000
 120,000 101,575 100%
2006 30 2,000
60,000
 120,000 103,607 116%
2007 30 2,000
60,000
 120,000 105,679 114%
2008 30 2,000
60,000
 120,000 107.793 111%
2009 30 2,000
60,000
 120,000 109,949 109%
2010 30 2,000
60,000
 120,000 112,147 107%
New Lao Kompong Chhnang Stove

The New Lao Kompong Chhnang Stove (NLKCS) can burn either wood or charcoal making it suitable for rural dwellers who often gather firewood rather than buy charcoal.

After laboratory testing, trial dissemination was carried out in two villages and 11 stove producers were trained to manufacture the NLKCS. Initial results indicate that the stove is yielding fuelwood savings of 25% and users are remarking that they need to collect wood less frequently.

Stimulating & Sustaining Production

During CFSP’s initial work in promoting ICS production, the provision of credit to producers proved effective in stimulating increases in ICS production. CFSP continues to provide carefully administered credit to assists those who want to produce the NLBS but who cannot afford the start-up costs for equipment. Please see our Reports & Publications for further details

To ensure that manufacturing standards and thus stove efficiency are maintained over time, CFSP has trained a Cambodian technical NGO, DATe, to monitor production quality . Sample stoves are collected from producers. Sizing and stove quality is checked in the field and more detailed analysis of stove performance is carried out in Phnom Penh.

Research and development to assist stove producers and producer training is ongoing.
Encouraging Collaboration

CFSP has brought producers of ICS together to collaborate on the standardization of the stoves and to prepare for mass media promotion of the stoves.

In Kompong Chhnang province we are working with ten large distributors helping them to understand the benefits of the ICSs. Through working with the distributors, CFSP also obtains data about the quantity and locations where the ICS are sold enabling us to target under supplied areas in the future.

Mobile distributors play a critical role in disseminating stoves in rural areas, whereas retail outlets play a larger role in towns and cities. CFSP regularly conduct surveys and shares data about the market for ICS.