The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has invited bids to select developers for 1,200 MW of wind energy projects in India. The projects, which will be connected to the interstate transmission system (ISTS), can be developed anywhere in the country.

Project sizes under this tender should range between 50 MW and 600 MW. NTPC will enter into a power purchase agreement (PPA) with the wind power developers forv25 years from the signing date of the PPA. The maximum tariff payable to each developer has been set at ₹2.85 ($0.040)/kWh for a term of 25 years.

The projects are to be commissioned within 18 months from the signing date of the PPA. The successful bidders will be responsible for arranging the land and transmission for the project.

The earnest money deposit (EMD) for bids to be submitted has been set at ₹600,000 ($8,343)/ MW. The pre-bid meeting for the tender will be held on September 6, 2019, and the last date of submission of bids will be September 16, 2019.

The NTPC has floated numerous tenders in recent months. For instance, earlier this month, the NTPC had issued a tender to set up 1,200 MW of ISTS-connected solar projects anywhere in India.

A few days ago, NTPC issued a tender to procure of 100 MW capacity of energy generated through wind or solar. NTPC is expected to sign PPA with the selected bidders to purchase power for one month from the starting date of the power procurement from the project. The power procured will be utilized for flexible generation of its thermal power projects. NTPC has set an upper limit of ₹3/kWh (0.04) for buying the power.

Many of NTPC’s recent tenders have not received an anticipated response from bidders, and they have seen multiple bid extensions.

Earlier this month, the NTPC had to extend the bid submission deadline for 1.2 GW of ISTS-connected solar projects in western India after it introduced an upper tariff ceiling for this tender through an amendment. An upper tariff ceiling of ₹2.78 (~$0.039)/kWh was set for the tender.

A developer had told Mercom at that time that “the upper tariff ceiling was a deterrent.” It remains to be seen how the developers will react to the tariff cap of ₹2.85/kWh in NTPC’s latest tender.

Tariff cap in reverse auctions has been a huge problem for the sector as developers are very reluctant to participate in auctions where tariffs can only go in the downward direction.

Shaurya is a staff reporter at MercomIndia.com with experience working in the Indian solar energy industry for the past four years in various roles. Prior to joining Mercom, Shaurya worked with a renewable energy developer and a consulting company. Shaurya holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Management from Lancaster University in the United Kingdom.