3 GW Solar & Wind Tenders Soon In Tamil Nadu

• TANGEDCO secures approval from TNERC to issue tenders for 1.5 GW of solar power and wind power capacity each
• It has been advised to issue three separate tenders of 500 MW each for both solar and wind power technologies
• This step should ensure competitive bidding and help TANGEDCO achieve its solar power obligation, even if there are legal issues involved
• For solar power projects, the upper ceiling tariff will be 3.00 INR ($0.044) per kWh, for wind it will be 2.65 INR ($0.0396) per kWh

The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) has secured official approval to launch tenders of 3 GW cumulative capacity seeking solar and wind power generation. With 1.5 GW of tenders to be issued for solar and wind power each, TANGEDCO wants to fulfil its renewable purchase obligation (RPO).

TANGEDCO had been waiting for approval to this request it filed with the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission (TNERC) for quite some time (see India's Tamil Nadu Planning 3 GW Solar/Wind Tender).

For both the tender capacities of 1.5 GW each for solar and wind power, the TNERC has advised to issue three separate tenders of 500 MW. These will be issued in phases. TNERC says this would 'induce more competition in the bidding process thereby facilitating TANGEDCO to get the real benefit of discovering a competitive price in the reverse bidding process'. It would also enable TANGEDCO to achieve its solar power obligation (SPO) target in the event of some legal issues.

All solar power tenders will have an upper ceiling limit of 3.00 INR ($0.044) per kWh. For wind power tenders, the benchmark tariff will be 2.65 INR ($0.0396) per kWh.

For financial year 2018-19, Tamil Nadu has to procure 4,553 MW for its solar RPO. It still requires 743 MW to meet this target. In 2019-20, its solar RPO requirement is 6,223 MW. This means an additional 2,413 MW for its next financial year.