India: new 200 MW tender issued at Pavagada solar park

The government of Karnataka has approved the tendering of 200 MW of additional solar power at the Pavagada solar park by Karnataka Renewable Energy Development Limited (KREDL).

The Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) is expected to decide the upper maximum tariff for the 200 MW tender. Once approved, Karnataka Renewable Energy Development Limited (KREDL) can then proceed with the tender’s implementation. According to Mercom Capital Group, a KREDL official reported that the capacity will be tendered soon, since the agency has already begun with the planning stage.

India’s National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) previously tendered 250 MW of solar (under the domestic content regulations) and 750 MW of solar (under the open category) at Pavagada in March 2017, as reported by Mercom’s India Solar Project Tracker. The entire capacity consists of five blocks, each comprising 50 MW of capacity. The scope of work for this project includes several parameters such as engineering, manufacturing, transportation, installation, and testing.

It is expected that from the date of commissioning and for a period of five years, the successful bidder will have to provide all equipment as well as operation and maintenance for the entire project. Initially, according to a NTPC official, there was uncertainty among developers for participation in this project due to inherent infrastructural issues at the Pavagada solar park.

However, these issues have since been resolved and the infrastructure is ready for development. KERC has also set a new standard tariff of INR.4.51 (~$0.066)/kWh for solar PV projects, approved since April 1, 2017.

The entire capacity of Pavagada Solar Park is expected to be of 2 GW once it is completed. Of this capacity, 200 MW is being tendered by KREDL, 200 MW by Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), and 1.6 GW by NTPC.

Author: Aishani Rungta