Projects and Tenders

NHPC Issues 2 Solar Power Tenders For

100 MW And 500 Mw In Tamil Nadu

Stepping up the pace after its 100 MW floating solar tender early this week, NHPC (National Hydroelectric Power Corporation) has issued two tenders, for a 100 MW and a 500 MW solar project. Both projects are to be located in Tamil Nadu. With these, the pace of solar development returns to Tamil Nadu, after a period of relative quiet.

Both the tenders come with an O&M provision of 10 years, following the standard PSU rulebook. NHPC has set itself a target of almost 4 GW of solar projects by 2024 going by past announcements, and these projects seem very well to be a push to get close to those numbers. The company already has projects worth 2000 MW with ISTS connectivity under implementation, after awarding them last year. It’s floating solar tender for Odisha was also announced recently.

For these two Tamil Nadu solar tenders, the last date for submissions is October 11 (100 MW) and October 8 respectively for the 500 Mw option. As a profitable PSU, it will hope to get some strong bids for these tenders no doubt.

While the minimum average turnover requirement for the both the tendered projects is Rs 700 crores. For the 500 Mw tender, bidding is allowed in multiples of 100 MW each.

The ramp up of tenders from NHPC clearly indicates a new dominance of PSU’s when it comes to fresh capacity creation. This is something that was on the cards for a while, as we had covered back in January this year. With NTPC doubling its own target to 2032, it should be interesting to see how the plans of the remaining PSU’s, be it Coal India, SJVN, NLC, GAIL and more, that have also committed to add solar capacity, pan out.

The flurry of new tenders indicates a strong revival for the sector, after a poor 2019-20 and even 2020-21. 2021 is already promising close to 8 GW of actual capacity additions, and the momentum of the new tenders, as well as the projects stuck in implementation indicates we might well see a new capacity creation record next year. Of course, each year will have to deliver a fresh high for India to meet its 280 GW solar targets for 2030.

Renew Power Commissions 250 MW Solar project In Rajasthan

ReNew Power today announced the commissioning of 250 MW capacity of its Interstate Transmission System (ISTS) solar generation project, SECI-3. The project has a total generation capacity of 300 MW which was won by ReNew Power in tranche 3 of the competitive auction conducted by the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI). ReNew expects the remaining 50 MW capacity to be commissioned by the end of this month.

This solar project is in the Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan and has a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with SECI and will provide clean electricity to the state of Bihar at a rate of INR 2.55/kWh (~US$ 0.035). The project is also expected to provide direct employment to around 600 people, according to the firm.

In this project, ReNew has installed monocrystalline modules with fixed tilt and string inverters which enhance the project efficiency. ReNew will also be using robotic module cleaning at this site to help conserve water in the desert state of Rajasthan.

Speaking about the commissioning, Founder, Chairman and CEO of ReNew Power, Sumant Sinha said, “With this commissioning, ReNew Power continues to contribute significantly to India’s growing renewable energy capacity in line with the country’s ambitious targets of achieving a capacity of 450 GW by 2030. This is the first project to be commissioned after ReNew started trading on NASDAQ (RNW) and is another step towards ReNew achieving close to 18 GW of installed renewable energy capacity by 2025. I am delighted that our teams were able to commission this project within the budget as well as within the stipulated time despite COVID related challenges.”

As of August 31, 2021, ReNew Power has a total capacity of 10.2 GW out of which 5.8 GW is operational across wind, solar and hydro energy projects in India and the rest is under construction or in the pipeline.

The latest commissioning from the firm adds to a string of projects going online this year, and further strengthens the odds of 2021 being the best year on record for fresh capacity creation. While industry estimated for 2021 have put a possible number between 8.5GW to 9 GW for this year, steps taken to clear obstacles by the MNRE seem to have borne fruit, and we might actually see the magic 10 GW number reached too.

TPREL Commissions 150 MW

Solar Project in Rajasthan

Tata Power Renewable Energy Ltd. (TPREL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Power, has commissioned a 150 MW solar power project in Loharki, a village in Rajasthan.

Spread across 756 acres of land, this plant is expected to generate more than 350 million units annually. Approximately 656,700 modules were used in the project, and the installation is expected to reduce 3.34 lakh tons of carbon emission every year.

“The commissioning of the 150 MW project in Loharki, Rajasthan has further fortified our position as one of the leading renewable energy company in the country with a strong presence in solar power generation. We will continue to seek potential of sustainable growth of renewable power in India,” Dr. Praveer Sinha, CEO & MD, Tata Power, said.

With this addition of 150 MW, the total renewables installed capacity of Tata Power has now become 2947 MW, with 2015 MW of solar and 932 MW of wind. About 1084 MW of renewable projects are under implementation.

Earlier this month, TPREL commissioned a 100 MW solar power project in Raghanesda, Gujarat, which is expected to generate 255 million units. The Raghanesda solar park, located in the Banaskantha district of Gujarat, is considered to be one of the biggest solar parks in the country. The project was awarded by Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd (GUVNL).

One of the largest solar manufacturers in India, Tata Power Solar operates a manufacturing unit in Bangalore with a production capacity of 1,100 MW of modules and cells. It has a portfolio of more than 7GW of ground-mount utility-scale, over 600MW of rooftop and distributed generation projects, and installation of over 50,000 pumps across the country till date.

MSEDCL Issues Tender for 487 MW Solar Projects Under Component A of KUSUM Schem

Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) has issued a tender for bids under component A of the KUSUM (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Evam Utthan Mahabhiyan) scheme, that has a focus on improving incomes of farmers and generating solar power at the scale. Until now, most of the solar success under KUSUM has been seen in component B, which is effectively the off grid component of the scheme. This is the second tender from MSEDCL under the KUSUM scheme within 3 months, after its previous tender in June.

IN KUSUM component A, schemes can be between sizes 0.5 MW to 2 MW. Under the scheme, 10,000 MW of Decentralized Ground Mounted Grid Connected Renewable Power Plants of individual plant size up to 2 MW are being targeted across India. Preferably on barren land. In case of agricultural land, use of stilts to host the solar plant is mandated. Component A in KUSUM is the only one that is not focused on solar irrigation pumps. Component B is about stand alone solar pumps, while scheme C is about grid connected solar pumps. Winning bidders will enter into a power purchase agreement with MSEDCL for a 25 year period.

MSEDCL has set the ceiling tariff for this tender at Rs 3.10/ unit, with a non refundable processing fee of Rs 5,000 per MW. A net worth requirement of Rs 1 crore per MW makes it a little challenging for farmers who might be interested.

The last date for submission of bids is September 17, 2021.

While we can safely expect many more states to follow up with their own tenders to fill up Component A projections under the KUSUM scheme, one hopes that systems at government agencies have been streamlined sufficiently to enable timely approvals and support for the winning bidders.

NHPC Tenders for 100 MW Floating

Solar Project in Odisha

India’s National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) Ltd. Has floated a tender for an EPC contract for the development of a 100 MW Floating Solar Project in Odisha.

The tender has been issued on the behalf of a joint venture (to be formed between NHPC Ltd. & GEDCOL). And the scope of work includes Engineering, Procurement, Construction (EPC) Contract for development of the project and associated 220 KV transmission line for connectivity at 400 KV Grid substation along with Comprehensive Operation and Maintenance for 10 years at Rengali Reservoir at Angul district in the state of Odisha. The project forms part of NHPC’s commitment to the state of Odisha, among others.

The last date to submit the online bids is October 7, 2021, while a pre-bid meeting has been scheduled for September 2, 2021. October 14 is the last date to submit offline bids. Interested bidders are expected to pay a tender document fee of Rs. 20,000. Also, the bid is valid for the next 120 days from the last bid submission date.

A 12 month period has been given for completion of the project from the date of issuance of Notification of Award including the commissioning period.

The bidder must have a minimum average annual turnover in the preceding three financial years shall be Rs. 800 crores. Bidder’s Net Worth should be positive in 3 out of the preceding 5 financial years. While the working capital (current assets minus current liabilities) should be at least Rs. 90 crores. Last month, NHPC had invited bids for a 600 MW ISTS (Inter-State Transmission System) connected solar project. The tender, which covers engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) for the project/s, is planned for Deora village of the Jaisalmer district in Rajasthan.

Gautam Solar On Course To Install

2500 Solar Pumps in Haryana

New Delhi-based solar power equipment manufacturer Gautam Solar has installed 1,500 solar pumps at various locations in Haryana under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) scheme, as per the company’s press release.

While the company had installed 1,000 solar pumps in Haryana by May 2021, by August, the company won an order of about 1,500 more solar pumps from Haryana farmers.

“So far, we’ve worked with the farmers of Haryana and Rajasthan…We look forward to working with farmers in the other regions of the country as well,” said Gautam Mohanka, managing director, Gautam Solar. Solar-powered irrigation systems provide a clean alternative to fossil fuels and enable the development of lowcarbon irrigated agriculture. In areas with no or unreliable access to energy, they contribute to rural electrification and reduce energy costs for irrigation.

The government has set a target of installing 22,000 standalone solar pumps in Haryana within the first year of the PM-KUSUM scheme. Under this scheme, the farmers have to bear only 40% of the pump’s cost, while the central and state governments subsidise the remaining 60% for solar pumps.

However, the Haryana government has provided additional top-up on the subsidies, which has reduced the farmer’s share to less than 25%.

Being the only solar manufacturer in the country that produces all the solar pump components in-house, Gautam Solar can maintain a steady supply as per the demand and serves as a single point of service for the farmers so they do not have to run from vendor to vendor.

“At Gautam Solar, we’ve always emphasized the importance of spreading ecoconsciousness and we believe that for substantial change to occur, we need to start at the grassroots i.e. Our farmers. While farmers have been using diesel-based generators for quite some time, they’ve been doing so because of the lack of options. In practice, dieselbased generators not only cause pollution but are also costly in the long term. This problem will only be compounded in the future as fossil fuel sources are becoming scarce. Pradhan Mantri Kusum Yojana is a wonderful scheme that will catalyze the adoption of solar energy as the primary power source in the rural areas of the country,” Mohanka had stated in May.

Tripura Joins The List for Rooftop Solar Additions in 2021-22 With 1 MW tender

North Eastern state of Tripura has also stepped up efforts to add solar capacity with a fresh tender for residential rooftop solar. The region has seen low solar progress until now, with the largest state Assam the only one with a solar project of over 50 MW, in the form of the upcoming 70 MW project from Jakson Group. Rooftop solar is finally getting its due however, and one hopes this tender in Tripura will mark a fresh start for faster rooftop solar additions.

The latest tender has been brought out by the Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL) to empanel developers to design, supply, install, and commission 1 MW of grid-connected rooftop solar projects on residential buildings at different locations in the state under Phase-II of the rooftop solar program. TSECL has just under a million connections in the state, with the state counted as a zero load shedding state since 2011. Like most rooftop tenders so far, successful bidders will have to commit to maintenance of the projects for five years after activation date.

The last date to submit the bids online is September 27, 2021 with bids to be opened on September 29.

Among conditions for successful bidders, key highlights are for bidders to have designed, supplied, installed, and commissioned grid-connected solar power projects having a cumulative aggregate capacity of at least 100 kW before bid opening date. They will also have to submit 3% of the project cost as a security deposit within 15 days of issuing the Letter of Intent. The minimum capacity utilization factor (CUF) has been kept surprisingly low at 13.5% for five years to achieve annual CUF within +10% and -13.5% of the declared value for the release of subsidy. That clearly opens the gates for use of polycrystalline modules, which are still manufactured by most domestic manufacturers in the ALMM list of MNRE.

The bids will also be covered under the MNRE notification on benchmark solar rooftop costs that were released recently.

With a minimum bid size of 100 to 200 KW in the general category, bidders will need to show an average annual turnover of Rs 15,000/kW of the bid capacity in the previous three financial years. This requirement is reduced to Rs 5000/kW for micro, small, and medium enterprises.

The document specifies that TSECL will allocate a minimum of 10% of the total allocated quantity to the lowest bidder (L1). If the allocated quantity is not executed, the L1 bidder’s bank guarantee will be encashed and the bidder blacklisted for five years for all government tenders.

The solar modules to be used in the project should have a warranty of 25 years.

The central financial assistance (CFA) or subsidy of 40% on the benchmark cost will be provided for systems up to 3 kW. For systems above 3 kW and up to 10 kW, a CFA of 40% will be applicable for only the first 3 kW capacity, and for others, it will be 20%. The CFA will be restricted to 20% for common facilities up to 500 kW for group housing societies and residential welfare associations. There is no additional subsidy from the state government.

The whole region, due to its hilly nature, offers opportunities in off grid solar, an area where much more could be done.

Coal India Tenders For Partners To Build A 4 GW PV Ingot-wafer-cell-module Manufacturing Plant

State-owned Coal India Limited has invited requests for qualification (RFQ) from prospective equity partners who wish to be shortlisted for setting up 4 GW solar PV ingot-wafer-cellmodule manufacturing plant. The move is significant considering all the solar manufacturing in India is focused on cells and modules, besides mounting structures. The complete value chain, from ingots to wafers to cells and modules is simply not available, and many industry players have pointed out the risks from this. Reliance seems to be the only other firm that seems to be considering and capable of executing this at scale. Coal India, which has the cash flows, balance sheet size and ability to pull this off with the right partner, if it does it well, would be a very successful diversification from its coal mining business, where it is the world’s largest coal miner.

The giant PSU has a 3 GW target for solar power capacity development in the meantime for 2024. Based on the responses received from this RFQ, CIL may run a subsequent selection process, shortlisted players will discuss proposed partnership with CIL followed by a Request for Proposal (RFP) process for final selection of the equity partner.

The selected equity partners will perform a variety of roles in collaboration with CIL, including providing equity investment in the proposed plant; selecting technology partner(s), engineering consultant(s), environmental consultant(s), etc.; securing project financing; monitoring and reviewing project development activities and ensuring project execution as per timelines; etc.

SECI’s Call For EOI In Providing Land in Uttar Pradesh

On September 7, SECI (Solar Energy Corporation of India) issued a tender inviting expressions of interest (EOI) for providing land to be used for solar projects in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state. The land is to be used for solar projects focused on solarising the state’s agriculture feed.

The tender follows the appointment of SECI by the Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP) as an implementing agency for selection of Solar Power Developers for Setting up of Solar Power Plant(s) for Solarization Of (Segregated) Agri-Feeders in the state.

The current tender has a last date of October 7, with bids to be opened by October 8. As the tender makes it clear, at this stage, this is by now way a commitment to buy or lease the land offered by relevant owners, just an effort by SECI to map out land availability in the state, with prices valid for 180 days, that can then be shared with potential developers keen to set up solar projects in the state. A minimum requirement of 4 acres of contiguous land, or space enough for 1 MW of solar indicates that the exercise might be a precursor to a larger tender for solar developers under component A of the KUSUM scheme, which has seen strong progress in recent months.

The exercise is critical in densely populated states like UP, Bihar and other agriculture dominated states, as land availability is a touchy subject, and ownership issues abound. Thus, clear title and rights are essential for developers to consider projects, or even get funding. The SECI effort is just one way to take care of this key aspect for later. Transparent tenders like this could also help somewhat to take out the many middlemen who crop up to ‘speed up’ the process when a developer tries to do the land acquisition on its own. Of course, providing clean, cheaper land is not an issue limited to India, as we saw in recent moves by the US admin to lower land costs to make solar more competitive. Developers are expected to buy the land or lease it for 30 years, as the case might be. Tenders for land can in no way be taken as the start of solar development, as they remain just a market mapping exercise, with subsequent project bidding and allotment still a process to follow. Readers will know that UP has really lagged in solarisation, and in recent months, it has seemed to make more sense for the state to pish harder for rooftop solar over utility scale solar. Be it it’s many pilgrimage centres, or government owned buildings and land, the state really needs to focus on the low lying fruits of solarisation.

Solarisation of agricultural feeders has been a key objective of the government in recent years, but ironically, it has faced its biggest challenge in states where power is free, like Punjab.

Thus, despite facing a power crisis, and some of the highest procurement costs for mostly thermal power, Punjab has made scant progress on the effort.

UP’s faces a different scale of challenge, which will not be made any easier by the decision to subsidise power partly following the pandemic for state farmers. With the state heading for polls in 2022, fingers can safely be crossed for any significant progress until after the polls.

IREDA Releases List of Tentative Bidders for 5 GW CPSU Scheme

The Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd. (IREDA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Tamil Nadu Generation & Distribution Corporation Limited (TANGEDCO) for providing its technical expertise in developing renewable energy projects and fundraising.

The MoU was signed by Mr. Pradip Kumar Das, Chairman & Managing Director (CMD), IREDA and Mr. Rajesh Lakhoni, CMD, TANGEDCO in the presence of Mr. M K Stalin, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, and other dignitaries.

Under the MoU, IREDA will extend its technical expertise to TANGEDCO for renewable energy project development, bid process management, and implementation support. IREDA will also assist TANGEDCO in debt raising through developing financial models, providing assistance in understanding market instruments, underwriting services for the proposed debt requirement, and conducting pre-market surveys and road shows to generate interest amongst prospective investors.

TANGEDCO is planning for 20,000 MW of solar power projects, with adequate battery storage, 3,000 MW of pumped storage hydro electric project, and 2,000 MW of gas-based power plant for efficient renewable integration. The estimated loan required for the above projects is about Rs.1,32,500 crores approximately.

Last week, IREDA, the agency appointed by the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) for the implementation of the CPSU Scheme Phase II, released a tentative list of bidders for building 5000 MW capacity of renewable energy. The list comprises seven bidders: energy conglomerate NTPC Limited for 2500 MW, Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd. (SECI) for 1200 MW, state-owned hydropower board NHPC for 1000 MW, Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd. (SJVN) for 1000 MW, fossil fuel electric power generation company NLC India Limited for 510 MW, Indian Railway Construction Limited (IRCON) for 500 MW, and stateowned Indian Oil Corporation for 250 MW.

SECI’s 1200 MW Tranche XI Wind Tender Sees

Winning Bids at Rs 2.69/Unit

Wind Energy continues to charge up in 2021, with SECI’s Tranche XI tender attracting winning bids at Rs 2.69/unit. The winning firms this time were ReNew Power (300 MW), Sembcorp through its subsidiary Green Wind Infra Energy (180 MW), Evergreen Power through Anupavan Renewables (150 MW). Adani Green scooped up the largest parcel of 450 MW with its bid of Rs 2.70/unit, leaving 120 MW for Azure Power at the same price.

For ReNew power, the win follows a series of aggressive bids it has made, and won, over the past couple of months, as it builds up a strong pipeline for its aggressive growth targets.

The numbers matter here because the bids for Tranche X had been won at Rs 2.77. Industry experts and discom officials have repeatedly been stressing that wind can work only at prices around Rs 2.70/ unit or lower in the present environment, just as they expect solar prices to stay within range of Rs 2.50. Discoms that we spoke to last month clarified that they donot see how they can justify a premium for wind of over 10 percent over solar, unless there are very compelling reasons.

Among the firms missing out, O2 Power had the closest bid at Rs 2.72/unit

For India’s wind industry, these auctions and the hope of quick PPA’s thanks to assured buyers is vital, to keep a steady pipeline of orders going. Keep in mind that domestic manufacturing in wind energy is much much better than for solar, and sustains a broader ecosystem of skilled workers. Manufacturers will be pulling out all stops to gran a share of orders from winners this year, as these orders will be delivered through 2023 with luck.

The winning group of firms is also interesting in that the smallest in the lack is the US multinational Evergreen Power. Though it did start operations in India. The rest all stand out for their presence in public markets today, with Renew joining the ranks last month. That means better access to funds, as we have already heard from both Adani Green and Azure in the past week itself.