KTDA Power Company (KTPC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) Holdings, has invited bids to develop solar photovoltaic (PV) projects for KTDA managed regional power companies.

KTPC aims to develop solar projects through independent power producers who will design, procure, construct, finance, and operate the projects.

The scope of work includes sourcing financing for the projects, engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC), commissioning, testing, and installation of the projects. The successful bidder will also have to take care of the projects’ operation and maintenance.

The last date to submit the bids is March 30, 2021.

The land required for the projects will be identified before the tender is finalized and provided to the factory either free of charge or leased for the term of the power purchase agreement (PPA).

KTDA manages renewable energy solutions for its tea factories through their regional power companies. These projects aim to provide cleaner and more reliable electricity to the tea processing factories and national grid through PPAs.

Through a grant from the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), KTPC had assessed the solar potential for 29 tea factories. The study concluded that all factories studied had sufficient energy demand and solar resources to develop financially viable solar projects.

The solar project’s capacity will range from 300 kW to 1,000 kW, varying from factory to factory with a mean capacity of 500 kW. KTPC will provide detailed information on the energy consumption and power demand to the shortlisted bidders later. The projects can include or exclude battery storage.

To participate in the bidding process, the bidder should have experience implementing and operating solar PV projects. The bidder must have undertaken solar projects in the past ten years with a cumulative capacity of at least 5 MW, with at least one project having a capacity of at least 600 kW. In these projects, the bidder should have acted in the capacity of an EPC contractor, O&M contractor, or an independent power producer.

Recently, Kenya Power and Lighting Company invited expressions of interest from companies to finance, develop, and operate captive solar projects of capacities ranging between 500 kW and 10 MW on a lease basis for its commercial and industrial consumers.

Earlier, the Kenya Electricity Generating Company had issued a tender for the design, supply, installation, training, commissioning of a solar module manufacturing unit with an expected yearly production capacity between 5 MW and 10 MW (peak electric power).