The Central Electronics Limited (CEL), a public sector enterprise, has invited bids to supply 100,000 monocrystalline solar cells.

According to the tender, the solar cells must be five bus bar cells with a minimum efficiency of 18.8%. They must be about 200 microns in thickness and measure 156.75×156.75 or 157×157 mm in size.

The last date for the submission of bids is January 29, 2020. The tender has been floated on a fixed price basis, and there is no price variation clause in the tender document. Interested bidders should submit the quotation in a single packet system.

According to the tender, only original manufacturers or their authorized representatives with a valid authorization letter are eligible to submit quotations. CEL has stated that it can also split the quantity and award capacities to two or more vendors as per the production requirement.

The supplier should also confirm that the modules manufactured using the supplier’s cells conform to the quality standards set in place by the government.

Interested bidders should have a minimum of 100 MW/year in-house monocrystalline solar cell manufacturing capacity.

The tender document also mentions that if defective cells are less than 3%, then all cells should be replaced free of cost. If the cells are more than 3%, then the entire lot will be rejected.

Meanwhile, those bidders who are not in the approved vendor list of CEL would be allowed to participate in open tenders. However, the quotation of such bidders would be evaluated based on the eligibility criteria mentioned in the tender document.

Demonstrating a step ahead in this direction, the Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation Limited (KELTRON) recently floated a tender for 196,000 monocrystalline and 196,000 polycrystalline solar modules on a per watt basis, as reported by Mercom.

In September 2019, Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) issued a request for quotation (RfQ) for the procurement of 798,430 monocrystalline silicon solar cells.