The Odisha Renewable Energy Development Agency (OREDA) has invited interested bidders to install ten solar cold storage units. The quantity can be further increased depending on the agency’s requirements.

The last date for the submission of bids is March 11, 2020, while the opening of techno-commercial bids has been scheduled for March 13, 2020.

The estimated cost of the project is ₹15 million (~$210,101). Prospective bidders need to submit a sum of ₹150,000 (~$2,101) as the earnest money deposit (EMD).

Apart from the installation, the successful bidder will also be required to carry out maintenance services for five years. Further, to ensure proper maintenance of the installed systems, the successful bidder is required to appoint a technically qualified person to take care of the maintenance of the project. Scheduled maintenance of each unit should be taken up every quarter, and its compliance should be reported through the mobile app. The bidder, if required, should agree to undertake extended maintenance services beyond five years on mutually agreed terms and conditions.

The tender adds that the installation process should also be documented step-by-step in a mobile installation app. After the completion of the installation work, each unit must be tested and commissioned in the presence of senior officials of the department.

Any interested bidder must be a company or a partnership firm or a sole proprietorship firm.

The bidders must have a minimum cumulative turnover of ₹4.5 million (~$63,030.4) over the last three financial years (2016-19) exclusively in the solar business.  Also, the bidder should have a cumulative experience of executing contracts of supply of at least three solar cold storage systems to any central or state governments, or government agencies in the last three years.

The bidder must indicate their capacity to manufacture or integrate different solar photovoltaic systems asked for in the tender within the specified time.

All ordered systems must be installed and commissioned within 60 days of receipt of the work order from OREDA.

Orissa has so far commissioned 385 MW of large-scale solar installations while 83 MW of projects are currently in the pipeline, according to Mercom India Project Tracker.

The state recently issued a tender for rooftop solar projects of various capacities across 313 fire stations in the state.

Mercom had reported earlier about Ecozen, a provider solar cold storage, and solar pumps, raising $6 million (~₹423 million) in Series A fundraise. Sathguru Catalyser’s Innovation in Food and Agriculture Fund (IFA fund) was the investor.