Madhya Gujarat Vij Company Limited (MGVCL) has invited bids to empanel vendors for the design, supply, erection, testing, and commissioning of 300 MW of grid-connected rooftop solar projects under Phase-II of the grid-connected rooftop solar program of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and Surya Gujarat Program for residential consumers in rural areas in the state.

The projects will be developed under the capital expenditure (CAPEX) model.

The successful bidder will also have to take care of the rooftop solar systems’ operation and maintenance (O&M) activities for five years.

The project should be completed within 12 months from the issuance of the sanction letter.

The last date to submit the bids online is March 7, 2022. Bids will be opened on March 11.

The successful bidder will have to furnish an amount equivalent to 3% of the total system cost as a performance bank guarantee within 30 days from the date of the issuance of the letter of award.

Interested bidders will have to submit an earnest money deposit (EMD) amount separately for each part, as given below:

MGVCL has stated that rooftop installations of up to 3 kW would be eligible for a subsidy of 40%. Installations in the range of 3 kW-10 kW will get a subsidy of 40% for the first 3 kW and 20% for the remaining capacity. The central financial assistance (CFA) will be restricted to 20% for the common facilities up to 500 KW for group housing societies and residential welfare associations. The CFA will be based on the discovered rate or the prevailing benchmark cost for that respective category, whichever is lower.

The bidder must quote the price for the solar systems through reverse bidding based on the benchmark cost provided by MNRE.

To participate in the bidding process, the bidder should have designed, supplied, installed, and commissioned grid-connected solar power projects having an aggregate capacity not less than 250 kW in the residential sector, which should have been commissioned before the bid submission date.

The bidders who do not have any prior experience or do not have minimum required prior experience in installing grid-connected solar power projects will not be allowed to submit price bids.

The average annual turnover of the bidder during the last three financial years should not be less than ₹15 million (~$200,476). Also, the bidder should have a positive net worth in the last three financial years.

The solar modules and solar cells to be used for the project should be ‘Made in India.’ Solar modules with a minimum capacity of 250 Wp should be used for the project. The solar modules should have a minimum efficiency of 16% and a fill factor of 75%. All modules should carry a performance warranty of >90% during the first ten years and >80% during the next 15 years.

Last October, the Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited allowed the registration of residential rooftop solar applications for up to 750 MW capacity from empaneled vendors for the financial year 2020-21 under the Surya-Gujarat program.

Earlier, the Paschim Gujarat Vij Company reissued an expression of interest (EoI) for empaneled agencies to set up 600 MW of grid-connected residential rooftop solar projects in the state.

According to Mercom’s India Solar Tender Tracker, Gujarat DISCOMs have so far floated tenders for 753 MW of rooftop solar projects.