Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Initiates Tender for 1,125 MW Solar Projects

Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam (GUVNL) has announced a bidding process for the procurement of power from grid-connected solar projects with a combined capacity of 1,125 MW. These projects are intended to be established in the renewable energy park at Khavda (GSECL Stage-3), Gujarat State Electricity Corporation (GSECL). Notably, these solar power projects are to be executed without energy storage.

Interested parties are required to submit their bids by February 15, 2023, with the bid opening scheduled for February 19.

The tender document costs ₹25,000 plus 18% GST, which must be submitted by the bidders.

₹300,000 is the bid processing charge. Approximately ₹928,000per MW of the quoted capacity is the earnest money deposit.

Upon receiving the letter of intent and before the signing of the power purchase agreement (PPA), the successful bidder must furnish a performance bank guarantee equivalent to ₹23.2 lakhs/MW of the allocated capacity.

Bidders are required to offer a minimum capacity of 50 MW. Eligibility extends to projects under construction, those not yet operational, and those operational without a long-term PPA, provided they are not bound by existing obligations to buyers or accepted under other central or state programs.

Within 30 days of the letter of intent or ten days from the Gujarat Commission’s tariff adoption, whichever is later, successful bidders must sign the PPA with GUVNL.
To mitigate technology risks and ensure timely commissioning, only commercially established and operational technologies are permitted for use in the projects.
As of the last date of the previous financial year, the net worth of bidders should not be less than ₹92.8 lakhs/MW of the quoted capacity. Bidders from countries sharing a land border with India are eligible to participate in this tender.

Projects must declare an annual capacity utilization factor (CUF) of not less than 17%. Successful bidders must maintain generation to achieve an annual CUF within +10% and -15% of the declared value for the first ten years from the commercial operation date. Afterward, the annual CUF should remain a minimum of 15% and within +10% and – 20% of the declared value until the end of the 25-year PPA duration.

GUVNL has mandated the use of solar modules from the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers issued by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.