NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Limited (NVVN), a wholly-owned subsidiary of NTPC, has invited bids for the design, engineering, construction, and commissioning of 1 MW rooftop solar power projects at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Jodhpur for captive consumption. The successful bidder will also have to take care of the operation and maintenance (O&M) activities for ten years.

The last date to submit the bids is April 26, 20201. Bids will be opened on April 27.

The successful bidder will have to furnish 3% of the contract price as the performance security within ten days of the receipt of the notification of award.

To participate in the bidding process, the bidder should have designed, erected, and commissioned grid-connected solar power projects as an engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor or a developer of cumulative installed capacity of 800 kW or higher. Out of the 800 kW, at least one rooftop solar project should have been of 100 kW or higher capacity. The reference project should have been in successful operation for at least six months before the bid opening date.

Alternatively, the bidder should have executed in the last ten years an industrial project either as a developer or an EPC contractor in the area of power, steel, oil & gas, petrochemical, fertilizer, coal mining, or any other process industry of a value of ₹40 million (~$543,944) or more in a single project. The project should have been in successful operation for at least one year before the bid opening date.

The bidder should have executed at least one electrical substation of 11 kV or above voltage level, consisting of equipment such as 11kV or above voltage level circuit breakers and power transformer as an EPC contractor or a developer. The project should have been in successful operation for at least one year before the bid opening date.

The bidder’s average annual turnover should not be less than ₹41 million (~$557,542) during the last three financial years. The bidder’s net worth as of the last day of the preceding financial year should not be less than 100% of the bidder’s paid-up share capital.

As per the tender document, the solar modules to be used should be manufactured in India and purchased from a ‘Class I local supplier.’ Further, the modules to be used in the project should be sourced only from the models and manufacturers included in the latest ‘Approved List of Models and Manufacturers’ as published by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).

The local content requirement to categorize a bidder as a ‘Class-I local supplier’ is a minimum of 50%. For ‘Class-II local supplier,’ the local content requirement is a minimum of 20%.

Of all the educational institutions, IITs have been leading the way in the drive toward sustainability. In December last year, NVVN invited bids for setting up a 3 MW grid-connected rooftop solar project at IIT Jodhpur.

Earlier, Mercom reported that the IIT, Kharagpur, intended to install grid-connected solar energy projects totaling 1,100 kW at its campus.

According to Mercom’s India Solar Tender Tracker, NVVN has so far floated tenders for 40.2 MW of rooftop solar projects.

Mercom’s flagship event Mercom India Solar Summit, to be held virtually on April 8 and 9, has an exclusive session to discuss “Can Rooftop Solar Come Out of Ground Mount’s Shadow and Be the Next Big Thing?” Industry stakeholders will share ideas on facilitating growth in the rooftop market and how to address challenges when dealing with DISCOMs. You can click here to register for the event.