The Bank of Baroda has floated a tender for the supply of solar power to its branches from off-grid rooftop solar power systems based on the OPEX (operating expense or no money down lease ) model.

The solar panels utilized in the project must have a capacity of at least 5.75 kW; the aggregate capacity of this tender is 2.9 MW.

The last date for the submission of the bids is October 22, 2019. The prospective bidder will have to deposit ₹1 million (~$.71 million) to participate in this tender.

According to Bank of Baroda, the interested bidder should be engaged in the solar business, including supplying, installing, commissioning, maintaining, and monitoring such sites for at least three financial years. The bidder should also have successfully installed a minimum of 50 remotely monitored solar systems with a minimum capacity of 3 kVA in the last five years.

As per the tender, the bidder should have an average annual turnover of ₹30 million (~$0.423 million) during the last three consecutive years.

The prospective bidder should also be able to provide total support for the complete system, including components of solar module, inverter, and battery.

The bank has specified that a minimum of eight hours of power must be supplied from the off-grid solar power system to run the connected electrical load in its branches.

Regarding the scope of work, the successful bidder is expected to install, test, configure, commission, monitor, and maintain the solar power systems at various locations identified by the bank. Also, the bidder should take the responsibility to provide maintenance support for the equipment and arrange for spare parts.

After schools, colleges, and hotels, this development of a bank opting for solar power is a welcome one.

Meanwhile, in February 2019, German development bank, KfW, and Bank of Baroda had announced that they would extend funding of $113 million to refinance solar power projects in India under the Solar Partnership II – Promotion of Solar PV in India.

Image credit: AleSpa [CC BY-SA 3.0]

Anjana is a news editor at Mercom India. Before joining Mercom, she held roles of senior editor, district correspondent, and sub-editor for The Times of India, Biospectrum and The Sunday Guardian. Before that, she worked at the Deccan Herald and the Asianlite as chief sub-editor and news editor. She has also contributed to The Quint, Hindustan Times, The New Indian Express, Reader’s Digest (UK edition), IndiaSe (Singapore-based magazine) and Asiaville. Anjana holds a Master’s degree in Geography from North Bengal University, and a diploma in mass communication and journalism from Guru Ghasidas University, Bhopal.