The Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission (RERC) has issued a tender to engage consultants to assist in framing the terms and conditions for the determination of tariff for renewable sources from April 1, 2020.

Interested consultants need to furnish a sum of ₹20,000 (~$278) as the earnest money deposit (EMD).

The estimated cost of the project is ₹1 million (~$13,886).

The last date for the submission of bids is January 1, 2020, while the opening of technical bids has been scheduled for January 22, 2020.

Prospective bidders should quote a flat rate for the consultancy work, including lodging, boarding, transportation, traveling, and other expenses.

The primary objective of the project is to assist the commission in reviewing the provisions of the existing renewable tariff regulations considering the developments in the sector during the ongoing control period and analyzing the challenges.

Other objectives also include analyzing the comments and suggestions received from the stakeholders.

The scope of work includes a review of the existing tariff regulations, analysis and study of alternatives for determining the tariff principles based on financial, technical, and operations, and collection of relevant information including cost, interest on loan and capital, and return on equity depreciations.

The scope of the assignment also includes specific assistance on operational and performance parameters and financial norms for arriving at the tariff and studying operation and maintenance (O&M) expenditure.

The entire assignment must be completed within one year from the date of signing of an agreement, which could be extended by another year on mutual consent.

The consultant will be required to submit the inception report within a month from the date of the signing of the agreement. Analysis of the comments and suggestions received on the draft tariff order and submission of the final tariff order must be completed within 15 days from the date of the public hearing on the draft tariff order.

Further, the consultant must submit the draft order for the tariff petition within 15 days of the final discussion with the RERC.

As far as the qualifying requirements are concerned, the successful consultant should have expertise in fields of regulation, legal, and finance. The consultant should have a clear understanding of the power scenario and developments in the renewable energy sector.

The consultant should have an experience of having assisted any central or state electricity regulatory commission in the framing of renewable energy tariffs, or studies related to the renewable energy sector through at least five assignments in the last ten financial years.

Further, the consultant should identify a team headed by a team leader and two other members to deal with the proposed work.

At least one member of the team should be a graduate in engineering. One member of the team should have a finance degree, and each should have experience of at least one year in the field of renewable energy.

With the growing renewable energy penetration and increasing stakeholder feedback on government policies, the implementing agencies are outsourcing the work of evaluation of their regulations to professionally qualified firms.

In November 2019, Mercom reported that the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission also invited terms of reference (ToR) to engage consultants who will help them frame the regulations for renewable energy tariff determination starting from April 1, 2020.

Previously, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) invited an Expression of Interest for the evaluation of its 5,000 MW Viability Gap Funding program for solar projects.