Bhutan tenders solar projects for healthcare facilities

Bhutan’s Department of Energy is inviting Bhutanese energy service providers and potential investors to develop solar PV projects for selected healthcare facilities across the country.

The tender covers 12.1 MW of distributed rooftop solar to be constructed across 73 public healthcare facilities under a build-own-operate basis.

Available tender details explain that the facilities have already been identified and assessed by the government and are grouped into four geographical bundles of approximately 3 MW each, with 15-20 facilities per group.

Work carried out under the tender will be supported by a green financing facility, a blended financing package consisting of 35-45% in senior debt supported by first-loss guarantees and 40-50% in concessional equity subordinated by low-cost capital, with the remaining 15% coming from the developer. The funding framework was first introduced under a separate rooftop and ground-mounted solar tender announced earlier this year.

The tender kicks off with an expressions of interest stage, in which prospective applicants are required to confirm their eligibility to the project. Tender details add that this is a rolling call for expressions of interest, with the first deadline set for May 29.

Successful applicants will be required to own and operate the solar plants for a concession period of 25 years and incorporate a special purpose company in order to sign a power purchase agreement and access financing from the green financing facility.

Bhutan’s cumulative solar capacity stood at 21 MW by the end of 2025, up from 3 MW at the end of 2024, according to figures published by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). The increase follows the commissioning of its first utility-scale solar, plant, a 17.38 MW array, in mid-2025. 

Last August, Bhutan awarded a contract for a 120 MW solar project and has since entered into separate agreements for solar and hydropower projects with capacities between 100 MW and 250 MW.

Bhutan’s current national energy policy, published last year, aims to reach 1 GW of solar capacity by 2030, increasing to 5 GW by 2040.