Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEBL) has invited bids for the appointment of engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractors to develop 11 MW of ground-mounted, grid-connected solar power projects at various locations in Kerala under the feeder level solarization of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) program.

The scope of work includes the design, installation, erection, and commissioning of solar projects amounting to 11 MW of different capacities across 21 locations on a total useable land area of 194,018 square meters, owned by KSEBL.

The contractors will also be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the projects for the first five years from the date of commissioning.

The total project cost is approximately ₹500 million (~$6.55 million), and the contractors are expected to complete the project within 12 months from the date of handing over the site.

The last date to submit the bids is May 26, 2022.

The bidders must submit a bid processing fee of ₹17,700 (~$232) and an earnest money deposit (EMD) of ₹500,000 (~$6,553). Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) are exempted from EMD.

The successful bidders must pay a performance bank guarantee (PBG) equivalent to 3% of the total contract value within 15 days from the date of issue of the Letter of Award (LoA) of work.

The selected contractors must maintain the performance ratio of the solar power plant above 75% for the first five years, and the plant must be designed for a project life of 25 years. The electrical degradation of power generated shall not exceed 5% of the minimum rated power of the project over the five years and not more than 10% after ten years, and not more than 20% at the end of 25 years.

The power generated from the projects can be evacuated to the nearest low tension (LT)/high tension (HT) grid at various locations.

To be eligible, the bidders must have successfully installed grid-connected solar power plants of a minimum 2 MW aggregate capacity in the last five years. Out of this, at least one project must be of 1 MW or more capacity operating successfully for a minimum of six months as of this tender’s issue date.

The bidders must produce a Solvency Certificate obtained within six months immediately preceding the date of notification of the bid, for an amount equivalent to 50% of the approximate project cost or more, from the Tahsildar or Nationalized or Scheduled Bank or a net worth certificate issued by a registered chartered accountant, along with the bid. The bidders must also have a minimum annual turnover of 75% of the approximate project cost or more for at least three years in the last five financial years.

KSEBL had recently issued a request for selection (RfS) for setting up grid-connected solar projects with an aggregate capacity of 34.5 MW near substations of KSEBL under Component A of the PM KUSUM program.

Last November, KSEBL issued a request for selection (RfS) of renewable power generators to develop 40 MW solar projects of 500 kW and 2 MW capacity under the PM-KUSUM program.

According to Mercom’s India Solar Tender Tracker, KSEBL has invited bids for 1.6 GW of solar projects to date.