The Kerala State Electricity Board Limited (KSEB) has invited bids to procure 200 MW power from solar projects on a long-term basis for 25 years.

A bidder can propose any number of projects in a single bid. The minimum capacity at a single delivery point by the bidder should be at least 5 MW, and the maximum capacity can be 200 MW. The energy procured under this contract will be accounted for the renewable purchase obligation (RPO) of KSEB.

The last date for submitting bids is October 09, 2020, and the pre-bid meeting will take place on September 29, 2020. The signing of the power purchase agreement (PPA) will take place on February 03, 2021.

Interested bidders will have to submit an amount of ₹500,000 (~$6,796)/MW for the total capacity offered as the earnest money deposit (EMD). The successful bidders should furnish a performance bank guarantee of ₹2 million (~$27,185)/MW in favor of KSEB.

To participate in the competitive bidding process, the bidders should have previous experience in the construction and operation of solar power projects worth at least ₹250 million (~$3.39 million).

Regarding the financial criteria, the net worth of the bidder should be at least ₹10 million (~$135,930)/MW of the capacity offered. In the case of a consortium, the financial requirement must be met individually or collectively by all the members of the consortium, subject to the lead member demonstrating at least 51% of each of the financial capacity required for qualification.

As per the tender document, the project should be commissioned within 18 months from the execution of the PPA. The range of capacity utilization factor proposed by the bidder should be 16% to 19%.

Background

KSEB Limited had filed a petition on October 14, 2019, seeking approval for modifications in the standard bidding documents to procure 200 MW of solar power from anywhere in the country.

Recently, the Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission (KSERC) approved KSEB’s request for inviting bids for procuring 200 MW solar power. The Commission also approved the modified bidding documents and draft PPA submitted by KSEB on July 30, 2020.

KSEB had initially floated the tender in December 2018, and CIAL infrastructures had emerged as the lone bidder with a bid for 10 MW. Given the inadequate response from the generators, KSEB canceled the tender. Later, KSEB decided to float a revised tender for the project.