The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has issued a detailed request for selection (RfS) for 1.2 GW of Interstate Transmission System (ISTS) connected solar projects across the country.

The ceiling tariff for the tender has been set at ₹2.78 (~$0.038)/kWh.

Interested bidders are expected to pay an earnest money deposit (EMD) of ₹400,000 (~$5,588)/MW undertaken. The last date for the submission of bids is March 19, 2020. A pre-bid meeting is scheduled to be held on March 6, 2020

Mercom had previously reported that the NTPC floated a notice inviting tender for this project. However, details regarding the tariff cap, bidding eligibility, and other requirements were not mentioned in the documents.

To be eligible to take part in the competitive bidding process, applicants must have a net worth of at least ₹8 million (~$111,771) per MW of their quoted capacity as of the last financial year. They must also have a minimum annual turnover of ₹4.14 million (~$57,841) per MW of capacity bid against this tender.

The documents add that the minimum capacity that a bidder can develop is 50 MW and in multiples of 10 MW from there, up to a maximum quotable capacity of 600 MW. Bidders can develop projects at multiple locations as long as each project is at least 50 MW. They are, however, allowed to only quote a single tariff for the entire capacity.

The developer will have to achieve financial closure for the projects within 12 months from the effective date of PPA.

The RfS also stated that the capacity utilization factor (CUF) of the solar projects selected must not be less than 19%. It also said that bidders are free to develop their solar projects anywhere in India.

According to Mercom’s India Solar Tender Tracker, NTPC has 875 MW of large-scale solar projects in operation, and about 2.1 GW capacity is currently under development.

Earlier, the Ministry of Power announced that the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) had been awarded the letter of engagement as the project management consultant (PMC) for the development of 300 MW of solar power projects in Togo, a member country of the International Solar Alliance (ISA).