The Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission (RERC) has approved the procurement of 1,000 MW of solar power by Rajasthan Urja Vikas & IT Service (RUVITL) from seven developers.

The decision, aimed at meeting the state’s renewable energy purchase obligations (RPO) and day-time power demand, upheld the competitive bidding process and approved the tariffs ranging from ₹2.61(~$0.0312)/kWh to ₹2.62 (~$0.0313)/kWh.

Background

RUVITL, formerly Rajasthan Urja Vikas Nigam, is responsible for procuring and distributing power in Rajasthan.

To comply with the renewable energy purchase obligations set by the RERC, RUVITL initiated a bid process to procure 2,500 MW of solar power. The initiative received approval from the Rajasthan government in October 2022.

In January 2023, RUVITL launched a tender to select developers for 1,000 MW of solar power projects connected to the state transmission utility out of 2,500 MW.

In the e-reverse auction in May 2023, the lowest tariff discovered was ₹2.61 (~$0.0312)/kWh.

Commission’s Analysis

The Commission noted that the process adhered to the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Power (MOP) and the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).

Nine bidders participated, and seven were selected based on their tariffs.

RUVITL executed power purchase agreements with the selected developers between February and March 2024 for 25 years.

The Commission highlighted that procuring 1,000 MW of solar power would significantly improve the state’s compliance with its renewable energy obligations.

The approval of this procurement is expected to increase the achievement of the “Other RPO” category from 26.35% to 27.77%.

Recently, the Commission approved the purchase of 3 GW of power from 1,111 solar projects under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan Mahabiyan program for 25 years.

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