The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has issued a tender for the development of 1.95 MW of solar projects with 2.15 MWh of battery energy storage systems (BESS).

The scope of work for this tender includes the design, engineering, supply, construction, erection, testing, and commissioning of the project. The selected developers will also be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the projects for ten years.

The projects will be developed on four islands in Lakshadweep; Agatti Kavaratti, BangaRam, and Thinnakara. The entire project will be allocated to a single bidder based on the price bid for the cumulative capacity.

The earnest money deposit (EMD) for the tender has been set at ₹4 million ($56,300).

The commissioning timeline for each project will range between six to twelve months from the date of signing the letter of award (LOA) depending on the size and location of the project.

The last date for the submission of bids for this tender is November 8, 2019.

Last month, Mercom reported that there has been a steady uptick in solar plus storage tenders in India lately. The Rajasthan Electronics and Instruments Limited (REIL), a public-sector enterprise recently issued a tender to set up 1.7 MW of solar PV  projects with BESS in Andaman and Nicobar islands.

In February 2019, SECI floated a tender for 20 MW of floating solar PV projects with 60 MW BESS on a turnkey basis in the union territory of Lakshadweep.

Last year, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) came up with guidelines and timelines for distributed grid-connected solar power projects in Andaman & Nicobar, and Lakshadweep islands.

In March 2018, the union territory of Lakshadweep joined the UDAY program. According to the statement released by the Ministry of Power, Lakshadweep was to receive an overall net benefit of approximately ₹80 million (~$1,225,680) by participating in the government’s UDAY program.

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.