NLC India has invited bids for the balance of system (BoS) package to set up a 50 MW solar power project in the mined-out land of NLC India’s Mine II in Nevyeli, Tamil Nadu.

The select contractor will also be responsible for the project’s operation and maintenance (O&M) of the package for three years.

The scope of work includes the design, engineering, site development, manufacture, supply, insurance, transport, storage, erection, installation, testing, and commissioning of the total capacity of a 50 MW solar power project and the evacuation system up to the delivery point except for the supply of solar modules.

The last date to submit the bids online is July 4, 2023. Bids will be opened on the same day.

Bidders must submit ₹4.167 million (~$50,568) as a bid guarantee. The successful bidder will have to furnish an amount equivalent to 4% of the contract value, excluding the O&M cost, for three years as a contract performance guarantee within 30 days from the issuance of the letter of award.

The contractor must commission the project’s total capacity within 15 months of receiving the letter of award.

As an engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor or developer, bidders should have commissioned a BoS or developed grid-connected solar power projects of a cumulative installed capacity of 10 MW or higher, of which one project should have been of 5 MW or higher capacity. The reference project should have been operational for at least six months before the bid opening date.

Alternatively, the bidder should have in the last ten years executed an industrial project either as a developer or an EPC contractor in the area of power, solar power, oil, gas, petrochemicals, fertilizer, cement, coal mining, rail, ports, and bridges for a value of at least ₹170 million (~$2.06 million) in a single project. The project should have been operational for at least one year before the bid opening date.

Also, the bidder should have executed at least one electrical substation of 33 kV or above voltage consisting of equipment such as 33 kV or above voltage level circuit breakers and power transformer, either as a developer or an EPC contractor, which should have been in successful operation for at least one year before the bid opening date.

The bidder, all consortium partners, collaborators, and all individual companies in the group should have a positive net worth per the latest audited financial statements.

Also, the average annual turnover of bidders should be at least ₹170 million (~$2.06 million) for the last three financial years as of the bid opening date.

If the bidder does not satisfy the annual turnover criteria on its own, its holding company would be required to meet the stipulated turnover requirements.

According to the tender documents, only Class-I local suppliers can bid for this tender. The local content requirement to categorize a supplier as Class-I local supplier is equal to or more than 50%.

Recently, NLC India invited bids to select a qualified coordinating agency to provide forecasting, scheduling, and deviation settlement mechanism for 1,400 MW of solar and wind power projects at various places in Tamil Nadu.

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