Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL) has invited bids to procure 500 MW of power from intrastate grid-connected solar projects with a greenshoe option of an additional 500 MW.

The last date to submit the bids online is March 17, 2023. Bids will be opened on the same day.

Bidders will have to submit ₹300,000 (~$3,623) as the bid processing fee. They must also submit ₹400,000 (~$4,831)/MW as an earnest money deposit.

The successful bidder will have to furnish ₹1.1 million (~$13,283)/MW as a performance bank guarantee.

MSEDCL will enter into a power purchase agreement (PPA) with the selected bidders for the purchase of power for 25 years from the scheduled commercial operation date in case of new solar projects or for 25 years from the date of execution of the PPA for existing solar projects.

The minimum project capacity should be 25 MW at a single location with a minimum bid capacity of 50 MW for projects.

MSEDCL has stated that projects under construction, projects which are not yet commissioned, and projects already commissioned but do not have any long-term PPA with any agency and selling power on short-term will, however, be considered in case these projects are not already accepted under any central or state programs.

Only commercially established and operational technologies can be used to minimize the technology risk and achieve the projects’ timely commissioning.

To participate in the bidding process, the net worth of bidders during the last financial years should not be less than ₹10 million (~$120,757)/MW of the quoted capacity.

Also, the minimum annual turnover of bidders should be at least ₹3.52 million (~$42,507)/MW of the quoted capacity during the last financial year.

They should also have internal resource generation capability in the form of Profit Before Depreciation, Interest, and Taxes for a minimum of ₹703,400 (~$8,494)/MW of the quoted capacity as of the last day of the previous financial year.

Additionally, they should have an in-principle approval letter from lending institutions committing a line of credit for a minimum of ₹879,000 (~$10,615)/MW of the quoted capacity toward meeting the working capital requirement.

The responsibility of getting the grid connectivity will entirely be on the successful bidder. The transmission of power up to the point of interconnection and energy accounting infrastructure will be the successful bidder’s responsibility.

Bidders should ensure that the modules to be used for the project should be from the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers issued by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.

According to the tender documents, solar modules to be used for the project must be warranted for peak output wattage, which should not be less than 90% at the end of ten years and 80% at the end of 25 years from the commercial operation date of the project.

Recently, MSEDCL invited bids to procure 350 MW of solar power from projects to be developed in the state.

Earlier, MSEDCL had invited bids to procure 450 MW of power from solar projects to be developed in the state.

According to Mercom’s India Solar Tender Tracker, MSEDCL has so far floated tenders for nearly 24 GW of solar power projects.