The Mysore City Corporation (MCC) has issued a Request for Proposal (RfP) for 3,825 sets of LED-based solar home lighting systems.

Each set of the LED-based solar lighting system will consist of:

• Lead-acid batteries with a warranty period of five years
• Solar PV modules of 24 W with a warranty period of 25 years
• Three LED lights of 5 W each with a warranty of two years
• Light output with a minimum of 15 Lux

The electronics used in the lighting system should come with a minimum efficiency of 85%, the tender specifies.

The deadline for the submission of bids is January 7, 2020, while the date of opening the technical proposals is January 8, 2020.

The items used in the LED-based solar lighting system should conform with the specifications provided by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) or the Bureau of Indian Standards.

The PV modules used in the system should be domestically manufactured. The PV modules should have crystalline silicon solar cells. The module efficiency for PV modules up to 12 W capacity should not be less than 10%, and the module efficiency for PV modules 24 W/40 W capacity should not be less than 12%.

The total cost of the project is ₹41.90 million (~$0.66 million), with the price of each set valued at ₹10,429 (~$145.94).

The tender also mandates an earnest money deposit (EMD) of ₹628,500 (~$8,818).

Any interested bidder should have achieved a minimum financial turnover of ₹79.80 million (~$1.12 million) in at least two fiscal years out of the last five. The prospective bidder should have completed at least one project of a similar nature with a value of at least 50% of the contract value of this tender.

Additionally, to participate, a bidder is required to submit a line of credit of at least 30% of the contract value.

Recently, the state of Tamil Nadu issued 43 tenders to supply, install, and commission LED-based solar home lighting systems in 53,734 houses located in the rural areas of the state.

In July 2019, Mercom had reported that under the government’s UJALA program, the Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) had distributed over 353 million LED bulbs. This, in turn, has resulted in an estimated energy savings of 45.85 billion kWh per year with an avoided peak demand of 9,180 MW and an estimated greenhouse emission reduction of 37.13 million tons of carbon dioxide annually.

Image credit: ENERGY.GOV [Public domain]

Anjana is a news editor at Mercom India. Before joining Mercom, she held roles of senior editor, district correspondent, and sub-editor for The Times of India, Biospectrum and The Sunday Guardian. Before that, she worked at the Deccan Herald and the Asianlite as chief sub-editor and news editor. She has also contributed to The Quint, Hindustan Times, The New Indian Express, Reader’s Digest (UK edition), IndiaSe (Singapore-based magazine) and Asiaville. Anjana holds a Master’s degree in Geography from North Bengal University, and a diploma in mass communication and journalism from Guru Ghasidas University, Bhopal.