The Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission (GERC) has adopted the tariffs discovered under the competitive bidding process conducted by Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam (GUVNL) to procure 200 MW of wind-solar hybrid power from projects to be set up anywhere in India.

The Commission approved a tariff of ₹2.99(~$0.036)/kWh for 50 MW for KPI Green Energy and ₹3.04(~$0.037)/kWh for 150 MW for  Juniper Green Energy.

The Commission also authorized GUVNL to sign the power purchase agreements (PPA) with the developers.

Background

On November 1, 2023, GUVNL issued a tender inviting bids for the procurement of power from a 500 MW grid-connected wind-solar hybrid power project, with an additional greenshoe option of up to 500 MW.

GUVNL received online bids from four bidders: KPI Green, Juniper Green, Avaada Energy, and Sprng Energy. However, Sprng Energy’s bid was disqualified as it did not submit a physical bid. The remaining three bidders offered a combined capacity of 350 MW, falling short of the 500 MW target. The technical bid evaluation committee reviewed the bids and found all three remaining bidders technically qualified.

The financial bids of the three qualified bidders were opened on January 22, 2024. The initial tariffs quoted by the bidders were: KPI Green at ₹2.99 (~$0.036)/kWh for 50 MW, Juniper Green at ₹3.27(~$0.039)/kWh for 150 MW, and Avaada Energy at ₹3.59(~$0.043)/kWh for 150 MW.

An e-reverse auction was conducted for 280 MW of capacity on the same day. While KPI Green quoted a tariff of ₹2.99(~$0.036)/kWh for 50 MW, Juniper Green quoted a tariff of ₹3.04(~$0.037)/kWh for 150 MW. Avaada Energy quoted ₹3.59(~$0.043)/kWh for 150 MW but was disqualified as its tariff was outside the acceptable range.

GUVNL noted the discovered tariffs were competitive compared to recent auctions by other central bidding agencies, where tariffs ranged from ₹3.15 (~$0.038) to ₹3.49 (~$0.042)/kWh. Consequently, GUVNL issued letters of intent to KPI Green Energy and Juniper Green Energy for a total capacity of 200 MW.

GUVNL filed a petition to adopt the discovered tariffs and sought approval from the Commission. KPI Green Energy and Juniper Green Energy submitted affidavits stating they had no objections to adopting the tariffs.

Commission’s Analysis

The Commission noted that GUVNL’s bidding process was based on documents consistent with the Ministry of Power’s guidelines and deviations approved by the Gujarat government.

It stated the Electricity (Late Payment Surcharge and Related Matters) Rules, 2022, notified on June 3, 2022, supersede the 2021 rules and apply to outstanding dues post-notification. It directed GUVNL to incorporate these rules into the PPAs to be signed with the successful bidders.

The Commission was satisfied with GUVNL’s transparent tendering process and adopted the discovered tariffs.

GUVNL was directed to execute the PPAs with the successful bidders within 60 days of issuing the letters of intent.

Recently, the Commission finalized tariffs for three solar power projects in Gujarat with a cumulative capacity of 1,200 MW and authorized GUVNL to sign the PPAs with the developers.

Subscribe to Mercom’s real-time Regulatory Updates to ensure you don’t miss any critical updates from the renewable industry.