Central Electronics Limited (CEL), which comes under the Ministry of Science and Technology, has invited expressions of interest (EoI) to empanel engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractors to develop 200 MW of solar projects anywhere in India.

The public sector enterprise intends to execute ground-mounted solar power generating systems ranging from 2 MW to 10 MW with a cumulative capacity of 200 MW across India.

The last date to submit the bids is September 10, 2021, and bids will be opened on the same day.

The successful bidder must pay ₹300,000 (~$4,044) as a security deposit for empanelment with CEL. The security deposit will be returned after 15 months and will not be adjusted in any manner.

Applicant must be registered in India with the Digital India Corporation (DIC) or Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), or National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC) for the last three years

The bidder should have designed, supplied, installed, and commissioned a cumulative capacity of 5 MW of grid-connected solar power projects either directly or indirectly for any government agency or public sector undertaking or any company listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) or National Stock Exchange (NSE) in the last five years.

Out of the total capacity, one project of 1 MW should have been installed at a single location in the last five years by the bidder to participate in the bidding process.

Renewable energy service company (RESCO) model plant can also be considered for the tender. However, the power purchase agreement signed with the state government or central government electricity board and certificate issued by the designated agency stating that the plant is operational on date must be submitted with the application or latest invoice.

Consortiums are not allowed to participate in this EoI. However, joint ventures (JVs) or group companies or subsidiaries are allowed to participate.

The bidder’s minimum average turnover should be at least ₹200 million (~$2.69 million) in the last three financial years (FY). The bidder must submit a solvency certificate of ₹50 million (~$674,070) from any nationalized or scheduled commercial bank.

The bidder must not be blacklisted or debarred by any government agency, organization, public sector undertaking, or autonomous organization.

Last November, CEL invited bids for consultancy services for 200-300 MW (in clusters) of grid-connected solar power projects. The projects would be developed under the Renewable Energy Service Company (RESCO) model in the far western province number seven in Nepal.

Earlier, CEL had extended the bid submission deadline for EoI for the empanelment of EPC contractors for its solar photovoltaic power projects. CEL had floated an EoI inviting EPC contractors to empanel for installing battery energy storage system on a turnkey basis in India using various battery technologies.

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