Construction Industry News
The Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL) has announced numerous tenders for the construction of solar projects with a combined capacity of 615 MW, spread over four different state areas. The land-based projects would be developed on government-owned real estate.
Projects with a capacity of 100 MW in Aurangabad-II, 76 MW, 105 MW in Aurangabad-III, 143 MW near Pune and another 191 MW in the Konkan region of the state are among the projects being tendered. May 8, 2023 is the deadline for submitting a bid. Bids open on the same day.
Each bidder is limited to one bid and must make a serious cash deposit of Rs 0.1 million/MW. Within 30 days of receipt of the work order, the winning bidders must submit a performance bank guarantee (PBG) of Rs 0.5 million/MW. It is valid for 14 months from the day it takes effect.
The Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) is signed within one month of the Letter of Award (LoA) release date and is effective for 25 years from the date of commercial operation of the proposed or new solar projects.
For one year, the specified Capacity Utilisation Factor (CUF) must be at least 19 percent. During the PPA time, the generator must continue to generate enough energy to keep the CUF within ±10 percent of the reported amount.
The project must be commissioned within one year of the effective date. SLDC/MSEDCL then issues certifications. In the event that the project is not completed by the scheduled date for commercial exploitation, MSEDCL will retain the PBG.
Bidders must have a minimum annual net sales of Rs 2.5 million ($30,544)/MW and a net worth of Rs 5.5 million ($67,199)/MW as of the last day of the previous fiscal year.
In addition, to meet the working capital need, bidders must obtain a signed letter of approval from a bank ready to extend a line of credit of Rs 1.25 million (approximately $15,272)/MW. The project must be planned to provide energy at the 11/22 kV level of the MSEDCL substation.
Within six months of the effective date, the winning bidder must secure grid connectivity to MSEDCL and provide documentary evidence of that connectivity. In addition, the bidder must cover the full cost of transmission from the project to the point of delivery, including construction, maintenance and losses.
Connectivity can be set up via a shared line or a dedicated line, but sharing is up to the bidder as long as there is a binding contract between them and other parties who share the same line for at least 25 years.
Earlier this month, MSEDCL launched a call for proposals for component-A of the Pradhan Mantri-Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) programme, calling for the purchase of 225 MW of electricity from decentralized solar projects with capacities between 500 kW and 2 MW.
MSEDCL submitted a request for proposals for 350 MW of solar power from state-developed projects in January.
