The Indore Smart City Development Ltd (ISCDL) has issued a revised tender for setting up 100 MW to 120 MW ground-mounted or floating solar power projects in the city.

In January, ISCDL floated a tender for 100 MW of solar projects. The tender has been reissued after the agency discovered that the available land could accommodate more than 100 MW of projects.

Criteria. Bidders must submit an earnest money deposit of Rs 250,000. ISDCL plans to appoint consultants for the combined duration of the project maintenance contract, the two-year execution period, and the five-year operation and maintenance period. They will have to provide services for the entire execution period, including any delays.

The agency said it would not pay any extra charges or costs to the consultant in the event of any delay. Consultants will also be responsible for arranging the power purchase agreement for the project.

The projects must be set up at the Jalud Water Pumping Station, Yashwant Sagar Dam Reservoir, and other locations. Consultants will be responsible for selecting additional sites as required.

Eligibility. Bidders must have experience working as a consultant for ground-mounted or floating solar projects in India in the last five years. They will be scored based on the cumulative capacity of solar projects they have implemented. They must have implemented a minimum of 20 MW of such projects.

Applicants will be evaluated and scored based on their average annual turnover for the last three years. They will be evaluated in the following manner:

Turnover between Rs 100 crore and Rs 500 crore: 15 marks
Turnover between Rs 500 crore and Rs 1,000 crore: 25 marks
Turnover of over Rs 1,000 crore: 35 marks

Scope of work. End-to-end support from the project’s conception, commissioning, operations, and maintenance monitoring, and all other support required for setting up 100 MW–120 MW of projects. They must also assist with land acquisition, technical, financial, and regulatory matters.

Last date of bid submission: 15 April 2021

As we have reported, 18 consultancy tenders have been floated this year by various state energy corporations, including the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation, SJVN Ltd, the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Limited, NTPC Ltd, and Maharashtra Energy Development Agency.

Floating solar projects have proved ambitious and have not always attracted bidders enthusiastically. Last year, West Bengal Power Development Corporation issued a tender for the third time, following poor responses to its previous retenders, to develop 10 MW of grid-connected floating solar projects on ponds at the Sagardighi Thermal Power Project in Murshidabad.

Image: A solar plant in Indore.

Also read: World’s largest floating solar project by 2023: MP Govt