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					</table><p>Leased areas for offshore wind energy projects will be valid for an initial three-year period for conducting resource measurements and surveys, according to the Offshore Wind Energy Lease Rules, 2023, issued by the <a href="https://www.mea.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ministry of External Affairs</a>.</p>
<p>The lease period can be extended by an additional two years. All clearances will be revoked after the five-year lease period expires.</p>
<p>The lessee must submit study or survey data to the National Institute of Wind Energy unless it has commenced setting up wind energy capacity as per the lease terms.</p>
<p>For the construction and operation of offshore wind energy projects, the lease can be extended for 35 years, with the possibility of further extensions on a case-by-case basis, considering the project&#8217;s operational viability and safety.</p>
<p>The leased area can range from 25 to 500 square kilometers, depending on the project size.</p>
<p><strong>Deposit and Fees</strong></p>
<p>To set up and commission an offshore wind energy project, the applicant must deposit ₹100,000 ($1,201) per MW. For a separate offshore wind transmission project, the deposit is ₹50,000 ($600) per MW to the central government within three months from the letter of demand.</p>
<p>The security deposit will be refunded to the applicant after the successful operation of the offshore wind energy project and its decommissioning at the end of the lease agreement.</p>
<p>Additionally, the applicant must pay an annual lease fee of ₹100,000 (~$1,201) for each square kilometer or part thereof covered by the lease.</p>
<p>This fee must be deposited within one month of receiving a demand letter from the lease issuing authority.</p>
<p>The lessee can give a 30-day notice to the central government if it wants to give up the entire or part of the leased area. It must pay the yearly lease fee for the next five years or until the lease ends, whichever comes first.</p>
<p>If only part of the leased area is used for a project, and the entire project capacity is completed, the unused part of the area can be given up with a 30-day notice, and the lease fee for the next 30 days or until the lease period ends, whichever is sooner, must be paid.</p>
<p><strong>Identification of Areas</strong></p>
<p>The lessee must install notices or markers at visible points throughout the leased area to indicate its boundaries within three months of the lease&#8217;s effect. Throughout the lease duration, the lessee must maintain these notices or markers to the satisfaction of the central government and other stakeholders.</p>
<p><strong>Lessee Rights</strong></p>
<p>The lessee possesses the right to utilize waterways for offshore wind or transmission activities as required.</p>
<p>The lessee can enforce restrictions, including:</p>
<ul>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul>
<li>Notifying entry restrictions into designated lease areas for specific periods specified by the central government for the offshore wind farm&#8217;s construction, operation, and maintenance.</li>
<li>Navigation of boats, ferries, and ships that obstruct the operation of the project site.</li>
<li>Regulating navigation within fifty meters for the foundation and five hundred for the substation.</li>
<li>Prohibition of anchoring or using fixed fishing gear within designated lease areas.</li>
<li>Managing activities such as scuba diving, windsurfing, kiting, etc., within designated lease areas.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Certain activities, like fishing for livelihood and others compatible with the offshore wind energy farm&#8217;s operation and public interest, may be allowed, provided they do not disrupt the wind farm&#8217;s normal functioning.</p>
<p>The lessee cannot explore or extract minerals, materials, or resources from the seabed, subsoil, or adjacent waters. Their rights are limited to activities related to offshore wind power generation.</p>
<p>Additionally, subleasing any part of the lease is not allowed without approval from the central government.</p>
<p><strong>Payment Default</strong></p>
<p>Failure to make payments on time will result in a monthly penalty of 5%, accruing on a pro-rata basis for each month or part of the fees or payments remaining unpaid.</p>
<p>If a lease fee or other payment remains overdue for more than three months, the central government may cancel the lease, and the cancellation will be effective upon publication in the Official Gazette.</p>
<p><strong>Decommissioning</strong></p>
<p>The lessee is obligated to dismantle all installations and remove obstacles from the seabed resulting from the project. Decommissioning must be finalized within two years of the lease termination, and all removed materials should be either repurposed, recycled, or responsibly disposed of.</p>
<p>The central government will provide specific guidelines for the decommissioning process of offshore wind projects.</p>
<p>The lessee must remove or dispose of all offshore wind energy project components, including turbines, equipment, machinery, cables, and civil infrastructures, within two years of lease termination.</p>
<p>The Indian Coast Guard is empowered to board, inspect, and check documents at wind farms, such as licenses and photo identification of the personnel, make copies as necessary, and on suspicion, detain personnel and seize material for further investigation or action as per applicable laws.</p>
<p><strong>Lease cancellation</strong></p>
<p>The lease will be canceled if, at any point, the lessee does any of the following:</p>
<ul>
<li>Violates the terms and conditions of the lease or does not follow any of the terms.</li>
<li>Does not use the leased area for the intended purpose within the lease period.</li>
<li>Uses the area for something other than what was initially agreed upon.</li>
<li>Causes significant and irreversible environmental harm, particularly to plants and animals.</li>
<li>Fails to provide the necessary documents related to the project.</li>
</ul>
<p>In November, the National Institute of Wind Energy <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/niwe-floats-tender-for-offshore-tamil-nadu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">floated</a> a tender for offshore geophysical and geotechnical investigations at different offshore wind sites in sub-zone-1, Gulf of Mannar, off the Tamil Nadu coast.</p>
<p>The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy announced it would <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/auction-first-offshore-wind-site-february-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">hold</a> auctions for offshore wind sites along the Tamil Nadu coastline, with the National Institute of Wind Energy overseeing them. The first zone (B) is set to be tendered by February 1, 2023.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Arjun Joshi</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Arjun-Joshi-1.png" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Arjun Joshi,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Arjun Joshi.</a></p>
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<p><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Arjun-Joshi-1.png" width="86" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong style="color: #00b451">Arjun Joshi</strong> </a>is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Before joining Mercom, he worked as a technical writer for enterprise resource software companies based in India and abroad. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Psychology, and Optional English from Garden City University, Bangalore. <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Arjun Joshi.</a></p>
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Ministry of External Affairs Notifies Rules for Leasing Offshore Wind Energy Sites


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					</table><p>The 2,050 MW Pavagada Solar Park in Karnataka is going in for an expansion with a proposed capacity addition of 3,000 MW.</p>
<p>As one of the first steps towards expanding the park, the Karnataka Solar Power Development Corporation (<a href="https://kspdcl.karnataka.gov.in/english" target="_blank" rel="noopener">KSPDCL</a>) has invited expressions of interest to acquire lands on lease from landholders in two villages in the Tumkur district to develop two solar projects with a cumulative capacity of 3,000 MW.</p>
<p>In June, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K.Shivakumar had said the government intended to expand the Pavagada Park, for which about 10,000 acres of land would be required.</p>
<p>The agency has sought lands to set up a 500 MW solar park within Inturayanahalli gram panchayat&#8217;s limits and a 2,500 MW solar park under Rapte gram panchayat limits.</p>
<p>KSPDCL has said it would require contiguous land parcels of 10,000 acres in Rapte village and 2,000 acres in Inturayanahalli village to set up the solar parks.</p>
<p>Landholders must give their consent in writing in the prescribed format to KSPDCL by September 15, 2023, with details of the extent of land held, documents to show ownership, and encumbrances, if any, among others.</p>
<p>KSPDCL would lease the lands at the rates they were leased for the existing 2,050 MW Pavagada solar park.</p>
<p>Then, the largest solar park in the world, the 13,000-acre Pavagada Solar Park, became <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/karnatakas-pavagada-solar-operational" target="_blank" rel="noopener">operational</a> in December 2019. It has been developed by KSPDCL, a joint venture between the Solar Energy Corporation of India (<a href="https://seci.co.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SECI</a>) and the Karnataka Renewable Energy (<a href="https://kredlinfo.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">KREDL</a>).</p>
<p>In 2022-23, the Pavagada Park generated over 4,503 MU of solar power, the highest since it was fully commissioned in 2019-20.</p>
<p>For the Pavagada park, KSPDCL was paying landowners ₹21,000 (~$254)/acre/year with a 5% escalation every two years. The area has traditionally been prone to droughts, making farming unsustainable.</p>
<p>In May last year, the state government <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/karnataka-aims-10-gw-renewable-projects-2027" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> the new ‘Karnataka Renewable Energy Policy,’ valid for 2022-2027. The policy aims to develop 10 GW of additional renewable projects, with or without energy storage systems, and 1 GW of rooftop solar installations in the next five years.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/nagaraj/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">B.S. Nagaraj</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Nagaraj_edtd-1.jpg" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">B.S. Nagaraj,</strong> Senior Editor at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/nagaraj/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from B.S. Nagaraj.</a></p>
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<div class="authorboxn"><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Nagaraj_edtd-1.jpg" alt="Nagaraj Bharadwaj" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/nagaraj/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong style="color: #00b451">B.S. Nagaraj</strong></a> is a Senior Editor at Mercom India. Nagaraj is an experienced journalist and has held senior roles in publications like The Indian Express and Deccan Herald, and Qatar Tribune. He has also worked for business advisory and risk management consulting firms in New Delhi.<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/nagaraj/">More articles from B.S. Nagaraj.</a></p>
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Pavagada Solar Park to Expand Capacity by 3 GW, Seeks Land on Lease


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					</table><p>The <a href="https://www.doi.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">U.S. Department of the Interior</a> has concluded the first-ever auction dedicated to offshore wind energy lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico region, yielding a remarkably high bid of $5.6 million for the Lake Charles lease area, while the other two areas did not receive any bids.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rwe.com/en/our-energy/discover-renewables/offshore-wind/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RWE Offshore U.S. Gulf</a>, a subsidiary of the Gernmany-based power producer <a href="https://www.rwe.com/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RWE</a>, secured the rights to the Lake Charles Lease Area, with a potential of around 1.24 GW of offshore wind energy capacity, supplying clean power to approximately 435,400 households.</p>
<p>The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (<a href="https://www.boem.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BOEM</a>) lease auction presented two offshore zones near Galveston, Texas – one spanning 102,480 acres and the other encompassing 96,786 acres. Additionally, a third area of 102,480 acres, situated off Lake Charles, Louisiana, was included.</p>
<p>The two lease areas adjacent to Galveston failed to attract any bids during the current offering.</p>
<p>The Department of the Interior had <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-first-offshore-wind-lease-gulf-of-mexico" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> the date for the offshore wind lease sale auction in the Gulf of Mexico in July this year. The move aimed to accelerate the deployment of 30 GW of offshore wind energy by 2030, paving the way for a carbon-free electricity sector by 2035.</p>
<p>Commenting on the auction, Elizabeth Klein, Director of BOEM, said, “The lease sale represents an important milestone for the Gulf of Mexico region — and our nation — to transition to a clean energy future. The Lake Charles Lease Area will have the potential to generate enough electricity to power about 435,400 homes and create hundreds of jobs.”</p>
<p>RWE Offshore U.S. Gulf has earned bidding credits, resulting in over $860,000 in investments for workforce training and the domestic supply chain and another $430,000 for fisheries compensatory mitigation.</p>
<p>The Department of the Interior has so far conducted four lease auctions for offshore wind, with a groundbreaking sale off the coast of New York and the inaugural auctions in the Pacific and Gulf coasts.</p>
<p>It has also commenced the environmental assessment for ten offshore wind projects and progressed the procedures for investigating additional wind energy areas located in Oregon, the Gulf of Maine, and the Central Atlantic.</p>
<p>The Department has embarked on refining its strategy concerning offshore wind development, aiming to encourage projects constructed by labor unions and foster a domestic supply chain.</p>
<p>In March this year, the U.S. Department of Energy (<a href="https://www.energy.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DOE</a>) had <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-strategy-offshore-wind-2030" target="_blank" rel="noopener">released</a> its Offshore Wind Energy Strategy, which targets deploying 30 GW of offshore wind projects by 2030 while spurring $12 billion per year in direct private investment.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Rakesh Ranjan</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Rakesh-Headshot-crop-2.jpg" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Rakesh Ranjan,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Rakesh Ranjan.</a></p>
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<p><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Rakesh-Headshot-crop-2.jpg" width="77" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong style="color: #00b451">Rakesh Ranjan</strong></a> is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Prior to joining Mercom, he worked in many roles as a business correspondent, assistant editor, senior content writer, and sub-editor with bcfocus.com, CIOReview/Silicon India, Verbinden Communication, and Bangalore Bias. Rakesh holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" rel="noopener noreferrer">More articles from Rakesh Ranjan.</a></p>
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RWE Subsidiary Wins Lease for Offshore Wind Site in the Gulf of Mexico


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					</table><p>The U.S. government said it would hold a lease sale for areas off the West Coast for wind projects that are critical to achieving the administration’s offshore wind energy goals of 30 GW by 2030 and a floating offshore wind energy target of 15 GW by 2035.</p>
<p>The area on offer is located on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) off central and northern California in the Pacific Ocean and is spread across approximately 373,268 acres. It has the potential to produce around 4.5 GW of offshore wind energy, which can power over 1.5 million homes while extending employment opportunities to thousands of individuals.</p>
<p>The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (<a href="https://www.boem.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BOEM</a>) would host offshore wind energy leases sale on December 6. It is expected to support potential commercial-scale floating offshore wind energy development on the country’s west coast.</p>
<p>BOEM Director Amanda Lefton said, “Today’s announcement represents years of close coordination and engagement with the state of California, tribes, ocean users, local communities, and all interested parties to move us closer towards achieving the administration’s vision to fight climate change and realizing California’s clean energy future while creating a domestic supply chain and good-paying union jobs.”</p>
<p>BOEM said it would offer bidding credits for bidders who enter community benefits agreements or invest in workforce training or supply chain development. The Bureau would require winning bidders to make efforts to enter into project labor agreements and engage with local tribes, underserved communities, ocean users, and agencies.</p>
<p>The latest leasing activity follows Secretary Deb Haaland and California Governor Gavin Newson’s announcement of an agreement advancing operations in areas for wind energy development offshore the northern and central coasts of California.</p>
<p>California’s final sales notice, to be published in the Federal Register later this week, will provide all details on the finalized lease areas, lease provisions and conditions, and information on the auction.</p>
<p>The notice would also include the names of the firms qualified to participate in the lease auction. It includes three lease areas off the central California coast and two lease areas off the northern California coast.</p>
<p>Last month, the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the Department of Energy <a href="https://mercomindia.com/us-needs-to-deploy-90-gw-solar-150-gw-wind-capacity-annually-to-decarbonize-electric-grid/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> a report stating that the country needs to deploy 40-90 GW of solar and 70-15- GW of wind energy annually until 2030 to decarbonize America’s power sector by 2035.</p>
<p>According to the Global Wind Energy Council, currently, 23 GW of offshore wind projects are <a href="https://mercomindia.com/2021-was-the-best-year-for-offshore-wind-installations-globally-gwec/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">under construction</a>. With a 49.5% market share, Europe is now taking the lead in offshore wind project construction, followed by Asia with 46.4%, and the U.S. with 4.1%.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/gourav-mishra/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Gourav Mishra</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/WhatsApp-Image-2022-04-06-at-6.37.25-PM-1-1.jpeg" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Gourav,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/gourav-mishra/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Gourav.</a></p>
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<div class="authorboxn"><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/WhatsApp-Image-2022-04-06-at-6.37.25-PM-1-1.jpeg" width="89" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/gourav-mishra/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gourav</a> is a staff reporter with Mercom India with over six years of experience in various roles with NewsX, The New Indian Express, IBTimes India, and U.S., Republic, and Analytics India Magazine. Gourav has a Master&#8217;s in journalism from Jain University, Bengaluru. <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/gourav-mishra/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Gourav Mishra</a></div>
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US to Lease Out Areas Off the California Coast for Offshore Wind Projects

<p>The United States Bureau of Land Management (<a href="https://www.blm.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BLM</a>) has invited expressions of interest to lease 89,589 acres of public land in solar energy zones (SEZs) to develop solar projects in Colorado, New Mexico, and Nevada.</p>
<p>The last date to submit expressions of interest is January 20, 2022.</p>
<p>In Colorado, the agency is expected to lease 9,712 acres in Antonio Southeast SEZ, 1,064 acres in DeTilla Gulch SEZ, and 2,650 acres in Los Mogotes East SEZ. In Nevada, it would lease 25,069 acres in Dry Lake Valley North SEZ, 4,569 acres in Gold Point SEZ, and 16,534 acres in Millers SEZ. Afton SEZ’s 29,964 acres is expected to be leased for solar energy projects in New Mexico.</p>
<p>According to the BLM, around 870,000 acres of land have been prioritized for solar energy development out of 245 million acres of public land it manages. The allocated land for projects could support over 100 GW of solar capacity if 8.5 acres of land is needed to develop a 1 MW solar project. The generated power from these solar projects could meet the power needs of over 29 million households. In addition to the prioritized land for solar, the agency maintained 19 million additional acres as open for potential solar development.</p>
<p>Earlier this month, Platte River Power Authority, a U.S.-based power utility company, <a href="https://mercomindia.com/us-based-utility-issues-solar-plus-storage/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued</a> a request for proposals (RfP) to acquire 250 MW of solar and/or co-located battery storage projects. The power utility would acquire projects expected to start power delivery on January 1, 2025, with guaranteed commercial operation dates no later than June 1, 2025.</p>
<p>The U.S. <a href="https://mercomindia.com/us-adds-5-7-gw-solar-capacity-q2-2021/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">installed</a> a record 5.7 GW of solar capacity in Q2 2021, a 45% year-over-year increase compared to the same period last year, Solar Energy Industries Association and Wood Mackenzie said in a joint report.</p>
<p>According to a report by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), the pipeline of solar capacity in the U.S. at the end of 2020 <a href="https://mercomindia.com/us-pipeline-solar-projects-battery-storage/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was</a> around 460 GW. Of this, 160 GW or 34% of projects include battery storage facilities.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/harsh-shukla/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Harsh Shukla</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><p><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Harsh-Shukla-293x300-1-new.jpg" width="99" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/harsh-shukla/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong style="color: #00b451">Harsh Shukla</strong> </a>is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Previously with Indian Express, he has covered general interest stories. He holds a Masters Degree in Journalism from Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune.</p>
<p><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/harsh-shukla/">More articles from Harsh Shukla.</a></p>
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Bids Invited to Lease 89,589 Acres of Land to Develop Solar Projects in the US

<p>Convergence Energy Services Limited (<a href="https://www.convergence.co.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CESL</a>), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Energy Efficiency Services Limited (<a href="https://eeslindia.org/en/home/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EESL</a>), has invited bids to empanel vendors to lease an estimated 1,000 electric four-wheelers (E4Ws) for various government departments and other clients across India.</p>
<p>The last date to submit the bids online is December 29, 2021. Bids will be opened on the same day.</p>
<p>The empanelment will be valid for two years and may be extended if required by CESL.</p>
<p>The successful bidder will have to furnish ₹1.5 million (~$19,882) as an empanelment performance guarantee within 28 days of the receipt of the notification of award.</p>
<p>The bidder should have been in existence for the last three financial years. The company should be experienced in fleet management and leasing at least 300 e-cars to a government organization, public sector undertakings, and private clients for a minimum of one year.</p>
<p>The bidder should have an average annual turnover of ₹450 million (~$5.96 million) during the last three financial years. The net worth of the bidder in the last financial year should not be less than 100% of the paid-up share capital.</p>
<p>Any bidder from any country that shares a land border with India will be eligible to bid only if it is registered with the competent authority.</p>
<p>Non-local suppliers are not eligible to bid in this tender.</p>
<p>CESL has stated that 25% of the tendered quantity has been reserved for micro and small enterprise (MSE) suppliers. Out of the 25% reserved for MSE suppliers, 4% has been earmarked for procurement by MSEs owned by Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe entrepreneurs, and 3% has been reserved for women-owned MSEs.</p>
<p>If the MSE vendor participating in the tender quotes within the price band of lowest (L1) + 15%, the vendor will be allowed to supply 25% of the requirement subject to the acceptance of the L1 price. In the case of more than one such MSE (L1+15%), the supply will be shared proportionately, subject to the condition that such MSEs match the L1 price.</p>
<p>In October this year, CESL <a href="https://mercomindia.com/cesl-empanel-financial-institutions-electric-vehicles/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">invited</a> expressions of interest to empanel financial institutions for financing EVs across India.</p>
<p>Earlier, CESL had <a href="https://mercomindia.com/cesl-electric-two-wheelers-andhra-pradesh/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">invited</a> original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to empanel themselves for supplying electric two-wheelers (E2Ws) in Andhra Pradesh.</p>
<p>Subscribe to Mercom’s <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/india-solar-project-tracker/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">India Solar Tender Tracker</a> to stay on top of tender activity in real-time.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Rakesh Ranjan</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Rakesh-Headshot-crop-2.jpg" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Rakesh Ranjan,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Rakesh Ranjan.</a></p>
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<p><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Rakesh-Headshot-crop-2.jpg" width="77" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong style="color: #00b451">Rakesh Ranjan</strong></a> is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Prior to joining Mercom, he worked in many roles as a business correspondent, assistant editor, senior content writer, and sub-editor with bcfocus.com, CIOReview/Silicon India, Verbinden Communication, and Bangalore Bias. Rakesh holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rakesh-ranjan-parashar/" rel="noopener noreferrer">More articles from Rakesh Ranjan.</a></p>
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Tender Floated to Empanel Vendors to Lease 1,000 Electric Cars

<p><a href="http://www.sjvn.nic.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">SJVN Limited</a>, a joint venture between the central government and the government of Himachal Pradesh, has issued a notice inviting bids for the purchase or lease of 1,250 acres of land for setting up solar power projects in Bihar.</p>
<p>Interested bidders must submit an earnest money deposit of ₹590,000 (~$8,093). Bids can be submitted online until February 15, 2021, for online bids. Offline bids can be submitted until February 22, 2021.</p>
<p>The land must come with the requisite statutory clearances for purchase or a 28-year lease. It must also include chain link fencing around the periphery. Applicants can place bids for a maximum of five land patches at different locations, with each patch being at least 250 acres.</p>
<p>The land must be within an aerial distance of 20 kilometers from the Bihar State Power Transmission Company Limited’s grid substation. The land must not be located in any prohibited areas, and there must be no government restrictions against setting up solar power projects. The purchase or lease process for the land must be completed within six months from the date of issuing the letter of approval.</p>
<p>SJVN said it intends to use the land to develop solar power projects under Bihar Renewable Energy Development Agency’s <a href="https://mercomindia.com/bihar-reissues-tender-develop-solar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">tender</a> to procurement 250 MW of power from grid-connected solar power projects. The tender was first <a href="https://mercomindia.com/bihar-tender-250-mw-solar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">floated</a> in June 2019.</p>
<p>Firms registered or incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956; registered or limited liability partnerships; persons or shops registered under the Shops and Establishments Registration Act; societies under the Bihar Societies Registration Act; or individuals who are citizens of India are allowed to participate in the tender.</p>
<p>According to Mercom’s <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/india-solar-tender-tracker/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">India Tender Tracker</a>, SJVN Limited has tendered 1.2 GW of solar power projects.</p>
<p>In October 2020, SJVN had <a href="https://mercomindia.com/sjvn-issues-tender-to-purchase/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">invited</a> bids to purchase 1,500 acres of land within 20 km from the Rajasthan Vidyut Prasaran Nigam’s state transmission utility grid substation for setting up solar power projects in Rajasthan.</p>
<p>Predominantly a hydropower generator, SJVN has been working towards diversifying into solar power generation. The company is not only pursuing the development of projects but also the <a href="https://mercomindia.com/sjvn-solar-hydro-projects-acquisition/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">acquisition</a> of existing projects.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/nithin-thomas-prasad/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Nithin Thomas</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Nithin-2-1.jpg" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Nithin Thomas,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/author/nithin-thomas-prasad/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Nithin Thomas.</a></p>
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<div class="authorboxn"><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Nithin-2-1.jpg" width="102" height="102" /><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/author/nithin-thomas-prasad/" rel="noopener">Nithin Thomas</a> is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Previously with Reuters News, he has covered oil, metals and agricultural commodity markets across global markets. He has also covered refinery and pipeline explosions, oil and gas leaks, Atlantic region hurricane developments, and other natural disasters. Nithin holds a Masters Degree in Applied Economics from Christ University, Bangalore and a Bachelor&#8217;s Degree in Commerce from Loyola College, Chennai.<a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/author/nithin-thomas-prasad/" rel="noopener">More articles from Nithin Thomas Prasad</a></div>
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SJVN Floats Tender for 1,250 Acres of Land for Solar Projects in Bihar

<p>The RS India Wind Energy Private Limited, (<a href="http://www.rswindtech.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">RSIWEPL</a>) a wind power producer that operates a 41.25 MW (25&#215;1.65 MW) wind-based power project in the Satara district in Maharashtra has floated the tender inviting bids to settle lease obligations of the company towards the Power Finance Corporation Limited (<a href="https://pfcindia.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">PFC</a>).</p>
<p>As far as the qualification criteria are concerned, interested bidders could be an individual, co-operative society, a trust, or a group company. The last date for the submission of bids is April 7, 2020. Interested bidders must meet the following criteria:</p>
<p>For banks, non-banking finance companies (NBFCs), asset reconstruction companies (ARCs), or securitization companies (SCs), the bidder should have a net worth of ₹1 billion (~$13.3 million), corporates should have ₹2 billion (~$26.6 million). If a financial institution bids, it should have a net worth of ₹5 billion (~$66.6 million) as on March 31, 2019.</p>
<p>For the development and operation of the project, the company has availed lease-based facilities from PFC. The company has been facing financial difficulties due to which it has not been able to service its debt obligation.</p>
<p>RS India Wind Energy Private Limited has submitted a one-time settlement proposal to the lender as a full and final settlement of dues owed to the lender (PFC). To attract more parties and also to achieve better price discovery, the lender may conduct a Swiss Challenge process by inviting bids from interested parties.</p>
<p>Swiss Challenge is a form of bidding primarily used in public projects in which interested party initiates a proposal to bid for the project. After receiving the proposal, the government publishes the details of the project, inviting proposals from other interested parties in which the second bidder can give suggestions or improve it.</p>
<p>In August 2010, a power purchase agreement (PPA) was signed with the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) for 36.30 MW for 22 wind turbine units of 1.65 MW each for Wind Zone 1. Similarly, in November 2010, the second PPA was signed with MSEDCL for 3.30 MW for two WTG units of 1.65 MW each for Wind Zone 2.</p>
<p>Later in May 2012, the company entered a wind energy PPA with MSEDCL for 1.65 MW for one wind turbine generating unit of 1.65 MW for Wind Zone 1.</p>
<p>The applicable tariff ranged between ₹4.41 (~$0.16)/ kWh to ₹5.07 (~$ 0.17)/ kWh for 13 years from the commercial operation date (COD).</p>
<p>According to the bidding documents, the promoters of RS India Wind Energy Private Limited submitted a binding settlement proposal of ₹1 billion (~$13.3 million), comprising cash of ₹500 million (~$6.66 million) to be paid to the PCL. It also included a deferred cash component of ₹500 million (~$6.66 million) to be paid in two tranches of ₹250 million (~$3.33 million) each by September 30, 2020, and March 31, 2021. The payment would be the full and final settlement of the dues owed by the company to the Power Finance Corporation.</p>
<p>In January 2020, <a href="https://mercomindia.com/maharashtra-discom-to-extend-commissioning-timeline-wind-projects/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mercom</a> reported that the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) had asked the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited to extend the financial closure and scheduled commission date for a wind project developed by Mytrah Vayu (Vedavati) Private Limited (MVPL).</p>
<p>Meanwhile, in December 2019, the Andhra Pradesh Power Finance Corporation Limited (APPFCL) had stated that the state-run power companies have <a href="https://mercomindia.com/andhra-power-finance-corporation-lending-power-companies/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">been raising</a> funds from financial institutions and other lending organizations at high-interest rates resulting in high payouts by these companies as interest.</p>
<p>Image credit: GERC</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/anjana/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Anjana Parikh</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><p><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Anjana2.png" width="112" height="121" />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.</p>
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Wind Generator Invites Bids To Settle Power Finance Corporation’s Lease Obligations

<p>Though the government has announced big plans to utilize the country’s offshore wind potential, there has been no progress in terms of project development so far. To this end, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has now issued draft offshore wind energy lease rules which are aimed at spurring activity in offshore wind, which has until now remained dormant.</p>
<p>The draft is up for comments and suggestions up to February 25, 2019.</p>
<p>This set of rules has been framed to regulate the award of leases that belong to the central government over to the developers to build offshore wind energy projects. The offshore wind projects will be set up along the coast line of India up to 200 nautical miles within the exclusive economic zone.</p>
<p><strong>Key Highlights</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>No project development activity or site survey for calculating potential of offshore wind can be undertaken without a lease.</li>
<li>MNRE will grant lease for all offshore wind projects in Indian exclusive economic zones.</li>
<li>For cases where the lease is to be granted by the state government, the central government will be consulting with the state before agreeing to additional terms and conditions.</li>
<li>Every lessee (person who has secured the lease) will have the exclusive right to carry out geological and geophysical surveys, studies relating to geo-technical survey and investigations, and testing operations required for development of offshore wind energy projects.</li>
<li>The area covered by a lease will be specified and the terms of a lease will be initially valid for a period of five years for prospecting and 30 years for the establishment of offshore wind power projects.</li>
<li>The lease can be extended on renewal of the lease for five years at a time.</li>
<li>The area covered under a lease will be 100-500 square kilometers depending on the size of the offshore wind energy farm.</li>
<li>For getting lease, applicants must deposit ₹100,000 (~$1406.2)/MW for installations and ₹1,000 (~$14)/km2 in case of prospecting.</li>
<li>The applicants must pay yearly lease fee, a sum calculated for each square kilometer covered by the lease at the rate of ₹10,000 (~$140) every year.</li>
<li>In case of the government exercising its power of preemption of energy generated, it will have to pay the lessee the price prevailing at the time of preemption for the power procured.</li>
<li>The central government in the national interests such as grid stability and security, by general or special order, can restrict the amount of electricity generation by a lessee in a particular offshore wind generation area.</li>
<li>All lease fee and other payments under these rules, if not paid within the time specified for such payment, will be increased by 10 percent for the duration of non-payment.</li>
</ul>
<p>When contacted, an <a href="http://mnre.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MNRE</a> official said, “We have learnt from implementing renewable energy projects in India. These rules will lead to faster development of offshore wind sector as provisions have been provided where state and central governments can work in tandem to boost this sector. The rules have been made in such a way that there will be very little arbitration going forward. Everything has been clearly marked out. Right now, not even a megawatt of offshore wind projects have been set up in India. These rules will ensure that growth happens in the right direction and it doesn’t get derailed due to developer problems, state government issues.”</p>
<p><a href="https://mercomindia.com/mnre-announces-30-gw-offshore-wind-target-2030/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">In June 2018</a>, the MNRE had announced short-term installation target of 5 GW offshore wind capacity by 2022 and long-term installation target of 30 GW offshore wind projects by 2030. This new set of rules will help the government develop offshore wind power sector in India and replicate the success of onshore wind power sector in the country.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Image Credit: Ragnar1904 [CC BY-SA <a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/R%C3%B8nland_Offshore_Wind_Farm_%282%29.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">4.0</a>]</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/saumy/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Saumy Prateek</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/saumy-edited-1.png" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Saumy Prateek</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/saumy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Saumy Prateek</a></p>
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<div class="authorboxn"><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/saumy-edited-1.png" width="79" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/saumy/" rel="noopener"><strong>Saumy Prateek, </strong> </a>is a senior staff reporter with MercomIndia.com covering business and energy news since 2016. Prior to Mercom, Saumy was a copy editor at Thomson Reuters. Saumy earned his Bachelors Degree in Journalism &amp; Mass Communication from the Manipal Institute of Communication at Manipal University.<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/saumy/">More articles from Saumy Prateek.</a></div>
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