The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI)’s tender for setting up 1.2 GW of solar photovoltaic (SPV) projects under interstate transmission system V (ISTS-V) has been undersubscribed by 50%, receiving bids for only 600 MW of solar capacity.

The tender was issued on June 28, 2019, with a bid submission deadline of July 31, 2019. The bid submission deadline was extended on August 1, 2019, to August 9, 2019. The upper tariff ceiling was set at ₹2.65 (~$0.038)/kWh for this tender. The projects were slated to be developed anywhere in India.

Only two entities submitted bids totaling 600 MW. SoftBank Energy has bagged two projects for a total of 450 MW. GRT Jewelers has bagged one project of 150 MW capacity.

As the tender has been undersubscribed, only 80% of the bid capacity would be awarded in line with the tender condition. Therefore, only a maximum capacity of 480 MW can be awarded out of the 1.2 GW tender.

Speaking to Mercom on the undersubscription of this tender, one of the project developers commented, “Most large players are struggling with cash flows, and the Andhra Pradesh fiasco also has hurt the developer sentiment. Most importantly, developers are not happy with the tariff caps set by either NTPC or SECI.”

In recent months, several SECI tenders have been undersubscribed, indicating a lack of interest by the developers due to various factors.

Recently, SECI’s tender for setting up 2 GW grid-connected solar projects (Tranche-I) under the second phase of the Central Public Sector Undertaking program was also left undersubscribed by 932 MW. A total of five government entities submitted bids totaling 1,068 MW capacity.

Moreover, another tender floated by SECI to set up 1.2 GW of ISTS-connected solar-wind hybrid power projects (tranche-II) was undersubscribed by 300 MW. SECI had floated the tender for setting up 1.2 GW of solar-wind hybrid power projects in February 2018, but the detailed request for selection (RfS) was made available for download only from March 8, 2019.

Before this, its tender for 1,200 MW of ISTS-connected wind power projects on a pan-India basis under tranche-VII was also undersubscribed by 50% due to tariff caps and land availability concerns.