The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has reportedly attracted bids totaling 5.28 GW capacity for its 2 GW interstate transmission system (ISTS) tranche IX solar tender. The overwhelming response is good news for India's solar sector that has of late slowed down due to the COVID-19 pandemic and several other issues.
Among the bidders for the largest volume is ReNew Power that bid for 1.2 GW capacity followed by the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) with 1.18 GW, according to Mercom India Research. Tata Power has bid for 600 MW while O2 Power offered to build 400 MW. Barring AMP Solar that bid for 100 MW, all other companies on the list, namely Eden Renewables, Azure Power, SolarPack, Avikiran Energy (Enel Green Power), Ayana Renewables and IB Vogt have each bid for 300 MW.
SECI launched the tender in March 2020 for the 2 GW capacity to be developed on a build-own-operate (BOO) basis. SECI has tendered 16.7 GW of ISTS connected solar power projects till date under tranches I to X and auctioned 8.84 GW under tranches I to VIII, according to Mercom.
Another research firm, JMK Research & Analytics claims the bid submission for this tender added up to 4.35 GW from 12 project developers. Vinay Rustagi of Bridge to India (BTI) told local newspaper The Economic Times that the massive interest in the SECI tender shows developers are anxious to build their own pipeline going by the slowdown in auctions and the recent 12 GW manufacturing auction to Adani Group and Azure Power. The Managing Director of BTI also believes that if the conditions persist, India's all time low tariff of INR 2.44 per kW may be breached soon.
The ISTS tranche X tender, launched in April 2020, seeks 2.5 GW solar PV capacity under Ultra Mega Renewable Energy Power Park (UMREPP) scheme to be established in Koppal Solar Park in Karnataka.
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