Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) has invited bids for the appointment of a transaction advisor for evaluating merger and acquisition (M&A) opportunities in the renewable energy space.

The scope of work includes technical due diligence, legal due diligence, tax and accounting, financial due diligence, and M&A transaction advisory services for the potential transaction based on the information made available by the seller.

The last date to submit the bids is November 10, 2020, and the bids will be opened on the same date.

Interested bidders will not have to pay any earnest money deposit (EMD) or bid security amount to participate in the bidding process.

GAIL has diversified into renewable energy with a portfolio of 118 MW of wind and about 12 MW of solar capacities so far. It is now exploring opportunities to acquire up to 100% equity in the following renewable energy assets:

As per the tender documents, any country that shares a land border with India will be eligible to participate in the bidding process only if the bidder is registered with the Competent Authority. The above criteria will not apply to countries (even if sharing a land border with India) to which the Government of India has extended lines of credit or in which the Government of India is engaged in developmental work.

According to Mercom’s India Solar Tender Tracker, GAIL has so far issued tenders for 13.42 MW of solar power projects. In September this year, GAIL submitted its Annual Report for 2019-20 that shed light on its ambitions in the renewable energy sector.

Mercom had earlier reported that GAIL sought the approval of its shareholders to amend the charter of the company so that it can start investing in solar power projects, various start-ups, and EV charging infrastructure across the country.

As reported previously, GAIL is implementing a 1.8 MW captive solar energy PV project at Vijaipur unit in Madhya Pradesh. GAIL has also installed a 5 MW solar power project at Jaisalmer that was registered with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change as a Clean Development Mechanism project.