Maharashtra Approves Tariff Of Rs.2.99/kWh For 50 MW Of Solar Projects
The Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) has allowed the Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Limited (MSPGCL) and Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) to procure solar power at rates discovered through competitive bidding. The MSPGCL and MSEDCL had jointly filed a petition seeking the commission’s approval for the adoption of tariff at Rs. 2.99 (~$0.04)/kWh for 50 MW of solar power projects under the ‘Mukhyamantri Saur Krishi Vaahini Yojana’. The MSPGCL had issued the tender for 50 MW of solar projects at various locations in western Maharashtra (Ph-II-C) to supply solar power to agricultural feeders on Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model and its operation and maintenance for 25 years. These projects are to be set up at different locations in the western parts of the state under the ‘Mukhyamantri Saur Krishi Vaahini Yojana’ program. In response to the tender, it had received the lowest bid of Rs. 2.99 (~$0.04)/kWh from SPPPH Solar India Projects Private Limited. The Commission had approved this tariff. Now, MSPGCL says it has identified the land at various sites to be offered to the winner of the bids at a nominal lease rent.The Commission noted that the MSPGCL was transparent in its competitive bidding process, and found it fit to adopt and approve the tariff of Rs. 2.99 (~$0.04)/kWh as it was within the acceptable range of the rates it had approved earlier for the MSEDCL. Additionally, the Commission, in its order, also allowed for the solar power procured from these projects to be considered for the fulfillment of the MSEDCL’s solar renewable purchase obligation (RPO) targets.
Andhra Pradesh Approves Amended PPA For 6.5 MW Of Wind Projects
The Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC) has approved the execution of an amended power purchase agreement (PPA) between Ramagiri Renewable Energy Limited (RREL) and Transmission Corporation of Andhra Pradesh (APTRANSCO). The PPA in question is for the sale of power from a 6.5 MW wind project in Anantapur district of the state. The commission has directed the two parties to sign an amended PPA within two weeks. The state body has also asked the generator to pay all the outstanding dues amounting to Rs. 6.85 million (~$96,126) to the petitioner for the power supplied from May 2018 within a month.
Kerala Commission Approves Tariff Of Rs. 4.23/kWh For A 1 MW Wind Project
The Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission (KSERC) has approved a levelized tariff of Rs. 4.23 (~$0.059)/kWh without the benefit of accelerated depreciation benefits for the electricity generated from a 1 MW wind power project installed by Kosamattom Finance Limited (KFL) at Ramakkalmedu. The tariff has been set at Rs. 3.93 (~$0.055)/kWh if the benefit of accelerated depreciation is utilized, and the commission has directed KFL to enter into a PPA with the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) at this tariff. In its petition, KFL had requested the commission to approve the tariff of Rs. 6.33 (~$0.089)/kWh without accelerated depreciation benefits. It had also asked the commission to approve the power generated from the 1 MW project to be fed into the grid and paid for by the distribution licensee, KSEB.
Mizoram To Develop 20 MW Of Solar Projects At Vankal Solar Park
The Power and Electricity Department, an undertaking of the Government of Mizoram, has issued a Request for Selection (RfS) for setting up 20 MW of solar power projects at Vankal Solar Park, Khawzawl in Champhai district of the state. The tender has been issued under the global competitive bidding, and the last date for the submission of bids is January 23, 2020. Interested bidders must pay a sum of Rs. 400,000 (~$5,617) as the earnest money deposit (EMD) while the bid processing fee is Rs. 25,000 (~$351). The scope of work includes setting up the solar PV project, including the transmission network up to the delivery point. The selection of the project would be technology agnostic within PV technology and crystalline silicon or thin-film or CPV solar panels with or without trackers can be used in the projects. As per the tender document, there are four plots of 5 MW each, and the prospective bidders can submit a single bid for a minimum of one plot or may participate in all four plots. The successful solar power developer needs to declare the annual capacity utilization factor (CUF) of the project at the time of submission of the response to RfS, which will be allowed to be modified at the time of signing of the power purchase agreement (PPA). The selected bidder will set up the solar PV project on a build-own-operate (BOO) basis per the provisions of the RfS and PPA. The maximum tariff payable to the project developer has been set at Rs. 4.50 (~$0.06)/kWh for 25 years. Bidders need to submit their bids by offering a single tariff for the project. According to the power and electricity department of Mizoram, the financial closure for the project has to be achieved within seven months from the effective date of the power purchase agreement. As per the technical eligibility criteria, the tender promotes only commercially established and operational technologies to minimize the technology risk and to achieve timely commissioning of the projects. The successful bidder must confirm the selection of technology at the time of financial closure.
AIIB Approves $65 Million Loan For Hero Future Energies’ Solar Project In Jodhpur
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), a multilateral development bank, has announced that its board of directors has approved a $65 million (~Rs. 912,896) loan for a 250 MW solar power project in Jodhpur. The Beijing-based bank said that Hero Futures Energies (HFE), an independent power producer, will develop the project through its special purpose vehicle (SPV) Clean Solar Power (Jodhpur) Private Limited, which is expected to generate 616 MWh by 2022. According to Mercom’s India Solar Project Tracker, Hero Future Energies had won the 250 MW solar project by quoting a tariff of Rs. 2.53 (~$0.03)/kWh in July 2018 under SECI’s 2 GW ISTS Program. The company had signed a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with SECI in November 2018, and the project is expected to be commissioned by October 2020.
CEL Floats A Tender For 1.6 MW Of Rooftop Solar Projects In Tamil Nadu
The Central Electronics Limited (CEL) has invited bids for 1.6 MW of rooftop solar projects to be installed atop various government buildings in Tamil Nadu. The scope of work includes the survey, design, engineering, supply, construction, erection, testing, commissioning, and operation and maintenance of the projects ranging from 10 kW to 50 kW. The last date for the submission of bids is January 4, 2019, and the interested bidders will have to submit an amount of Rs. 750,000 (~$10,533) as the earnest money deposit (EMD). As for the eligibility criteria, the bidder should have designed, supplied, tested, installed, and commissioned a cumulative capacity of 500 kW of solar power projects directly or indirectly for any government department or cooperative society in the last three years. This should include two power projects of at least 50 kW installed before April 1, 2019.
Maharashtra’s 1,350 MW Solar Auction Receives Poor Response And A Single Bid Of 5 MW
MSEDCL had floated 30 district wise tenders on August 31, 2019, to procure 1,350 MW of solar power in 30 circles with project sizes ranging from 25 MW to 50 MW. For one of the districts, Baramati, a bid was received for 5 MW, and Kiran Renewables was found to be technically qualified. The tariff ceiling for this tender was set at Rs. 3.14 (~$0.044)/kWh.The tariff was discovered through competitive bidding conducted by the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd. (MSEDCL) under the state’s Mukhyamantri Saur Krishi Vahini Yojana. The power procured from this project will be counted towards the fulfillment of MSEDCL’s solar RPO.MSEDCL had requested the commission to approve the tariff of Rs. 3.14 (~$0.044)/kWh and the signing of the PPA with the successful bidder for 5 MW of solar power. It had also requested the commission to make this power eligible for meeting its solar RPO requirement.The commission noted that MSEDCL had conducted a transparent, competitive bidding to procure 5 MW of solar power and the tariff of Rs. 3.14 (~$0.044)/kWh discovered during the bidding process was comparable with the rates of Rs. 3.09 (~$0.043) and ₹3.15 (~$0.044)/kWh that were adopted by the commission before. With this background, the commission approved the tariff of Rs. 3.14(~$0.044)/kWh for the procurement of 5 MW of solar power.The commission further noted that even after repeated extensions of the bid submission deadline, the response to the tender was very poor. Against the total bid capacity of 1,350 MW, only one bid was received for 5 MW and that too by only one bidder.
Military Engineer Services Issues Tender For A 500 kW Rooftop Solar Project In Tamil Nadu
The Military Engineer Services (MES) has issued a tender for a 500 kW rooftop solar power project at Indian Naval Air Station at Rajali, Arakkonam in Tamil Nadu. The bid submission deadline is December 30, 2019. The estimated cost of the project is Rs. 27.5 million (~$386,881). The period of completion has been divided into five phases, where each phase comprises 12 months.The scope of work includes detailed engineering, design including the feasibility survey for the solar power project, along with the topographic survey, and foundation design. The successful bidder will also be responsible for getting the design vetted from an approved agency, manufacturing, supplying, erecting, installing, testing, and commissioning of the solar project on a turnkey and performance guarantee basis.The prospective bidders must deposit Rs. 349,000 (~$4,910) as the earnest money deposit (EMD). Interested bidders should have prior experience of having successfully completed solar power projects in government departments or public sector undertakings (PSUs) during the last seven years.
