It was a good month for solar tenders, which increased by nearly 377% (four times) in March 2020 as compared to February, despite countrywide lockdown in the second half of March 2020.

According to Mercom’s India Solar Tender Tracker, a total of 8 GW of solar projects were announced in March, while 1.7 GW of solar projects were announced in February.

The total capacity tendered during March also saw an increase of 50% during the same period last year.

The auctions declined by 75% in March as compared to the previous month, with only 350 MW of auctions as compared to 1.4 GW in February. The auction activities were down by 53% as compared to the same period last year.

 

Here’s a quick recap of the large tenders announced in March:

The largest tender was issued by the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), a request for selection for renewable energy developers to supply 5 GW of round-the-clock power from grid-connected renewable power projects, bundled with power from coal-based thermal projects in the country. The minimum project capacity a developer can bid for is 500 MW, and the maximum is 5 GW. A single bidder can be allocated a maximum of 5 GW of projects, according to the terms of the RfS.

SECI announced two tenders for 2 GW of solar and 2 GW of wind projects. The ISTS solar and wind power projects were floated under tranche-IX of the ISTS program. The scope of work for the 2 GW solar tender includes the acquisition of land, connectivity, and long-term open access approvals by the solar power developer.

 

The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) issued a notice inviting tender (NIT) for setting up of 1,200 MW of interstate transmission system (ISTS) connected renewable projects with guaranteed peak power supply. The detailed tender document is likely to be uploaded on SECI’s website shortly.

The Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (GUVNL) retendered 700 MW of grid-connected solar projects located in the state’s Dholera solar park (Phase IX).

Auction

In March, GUVNL announced the list of successful bidders in the auction for 350 MW of grid-connected solar projects (Phase VIII). The successful bidders were Vena Energy Clean Power Private Limited, which won a capacity of 40 MW at the quoted price of ₹2.61 (~$0.035)/kWh, Juniper Energy Green Power Limited which won a capacity of 190 MW at ₹2.63 (~$0.036)/kWh. Tata Power placed its bid for 200 MW but won a capacity of 120 MW in line with the bucket filling method at a tariff of ₹2.64 (~$0.037)/kWh.

Image Credit: Greenskies