Uzbekistan’s 500 MW PV tender concludes with lowest bid of $0.02888/kWh

Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Energy has revealed the winners of a solar tender that was launched in September. The procurement exercise involved three solar projects totaling 500 MW in the Namangan, Bukhara, and Khorezm regions.

Abu Dhabi-based developer Masdar secured the project in the Bukhara region with a bid of $0.03044/kWh. The 250 MW plant will be connected to a 62 MW storage facility.

A consortium led by PowerChina secured the 150 MW project in Uzbekistan’s Namangan region. The group offered a final price of $0.04828/kWh.

French developer Voltalia won the project in the Khorezm region with a bid of $0.02888/kWh.

The Uzbek authorities initially selected 11 bidders for the final phase of the tender. The list also included Chinese solar developer Jinko Power, Saudi Arabian utility ACWA Power, Turkey's Alarko Holding AS, and Egypt's Elsewedy Electric. Other bidders include Qatar-based Nebras Power, a consortium led by India's ReNew Power, Spanish developer Solarpack, French developer Voltalia, and Chinese inverter maker TBEA.

The procurement exercise is the first of two solar tenders for 900 MW that Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Energy announced in August 2021. The country aims to deploy 8 GW of solar by 2030. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the country had only installed 104 MW of solar by the end of 2021.