Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology in Uttarakhand’s Pantnagar town, has tendered a 5 MW grid-connected rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) project.

The bid-submission deadline is May 31, 2018.

The university has set ₹2.38 (~$0.0354)/kWh as the upper tariff cap for this tender. This is the current tariff set for solar by Uttarakhand Electricity Regulatory Commission (UERC).

Central or state government empaneled channel partners can participate in this tender. The project will be developed on the premises of Govind Ballabh Pant University, and the scope of work includes the design, engineering, supply, construction, installation, testing, and commissioning of the 5 MW grid-connected rooftop solar PV project. The power generated from the rooftop solar project will be utilized for self-consumption by the university.

This is not the first time an Indian university has turned to solar power to meet its increasing energy needs.

In June 2017, Jamia Millia Islamia, a reputed government college, tendered a 2.25 MW (AC) solar PV project to be developed on RESCO mode at Jamia Millia Islamia University premises in Delhi.

In the same month, Mercom also reported that Rajasthan Electronics and Instruments Limited (REIL), a joint venture of Government of India and Government of Rajasthan, tendered 950 kW of grid-connected rooftop solar to be developed atop buildings owned by Rajasthan University in Jaipur.

In July 2017, Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) tendered an 8 MW (DC) grid-connected rooftop solar PV project on behalf of Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi.

A bottom-up analysis performed by Mercom in its 2017 Q4 Solar Market Update found that India’s rooftop installations grew by 56 percent year-over-year to reach a cumulative total of nearly 1.6 GW on December 31, 2017.