The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has once again extended the bid submission deadline for its tender for 6 GW of the interstate transmission system (ISTS)-connected solar projects linked with setting up of 2 GW (per annum) solar manufacturing.

This is the second extension of the bid submission date for this tender.

Now, the new deadline for bid submission is October 31, 2019. In September 2019, SECI had extended the last date for bid submission to October 11, 2019. The initial deadline was September 11, 2019, as was reported by Mercom.

A senior SECI official told Mercom that the department received the amended guidelines from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) only yesterday.

“The new extension is given to incorporate amendments suggested by the MNRE, and we will be uploading the revised tender documents with new parameters soon,” he said.

Earlier, the official had told Mercom that “certain inputs are required from higher-ups.”

Previously, Mercom had reported that SECI had set the maximum tariff payable to the project developer at ₹2.75 (~$0.039)/ kWh for 25 years. Then, a SECI official had informed Mercom that the tender is very flexible and has been issued after due deliberation and consultation with the minister, senior officials, manufacturers, and major stakeholders.

In June 2019, the SECI had revamped and reissued the manufacturing linked solar tender, which it had initially floated in January 2019.

In this tender, SECI has specified two bid packages which are as follows:

Bid package A: Under this, two projects will be awarded: 500 MW of cell manufacturing capacity and 500 MW of module manufacturing capacity.

Bid package B: Under which 500 MW of ingot manufacturing and 500 MW of wafer manufacturing capacity will be awarded.

For each of these packages, a bidder can choose to bid for up to a maximum of 1.5 GW of solar PV project capacity.

Image credit: Sova Solar

Anjana is a news editor at Mercom India. Before joining Mercom, she held roles of senior editor, district correspondent, and sub-editor for The Times of India, Biospectrum and The Sunday Guardian. Before that, she worked at the Deccan Herald and the Asianlite as chief sub-editor and news editor. She has also contributed to The Quint, Hindustan Times, The New Indian Express, Reader’s Digest (UK edition), IndiaSe (Singapore-based magazine) and Asiaville. Anjana holds a Master’s degree in Geography from North Bengal University, and a diploma in mass communication and journalism from Guru Ghasidas University, Bhopal.