The Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited (UPCL) has floated a tender inviting expression of interest (EoI) for the rate contract and empanelment of vendors for grid-connected rooftop solar power projects between 1 kW and 500 kW. The total capacity of the projects to be developed is 10 MW.

Interested bidders must pay a sum of ₹2 million (~$27,960) as the earnest money deposit (EMD). The deadline for the submission of bids is November 29, 2019.

The scope of work involves the design, manufacture, supply, erection, testing, and commissioning of the projects, including five years of operation and maintenance.

The projects have divided into categories. Out of the total capacity of 10 MW, 6 MW falls under A, 3 MW is under category B, and 1 MW has been allocated under category C. That said, these allocations of capacity are tentative and can be interchanged depending upon the number of bidders qualified in a given category and project demands in various categories.

The pre-qualifying requirement of the tender is that the selected bidder should be a photovoltaic system integrator having experience in the installation and commissioning of solar power projects in MNRE supported programs.

The successful bidder should have installed and commissioned a grid-connected solar PV power project having a total capacity of at least 50 kW, which should have been commissioned at least six months before the techno-commercial bid opening date.

According to the tender, the minimum annual average turnover of the successful bidder should be at least ₹30 million (~$0.42 million) in the last three financial years.

In September 2019, Mercom reported that the Uttarakhand Renewable Energy Development Agency (UREDA) issued a tender inviting expression of interest for the empanelment of engineering, procurement, and construction contractors to develop off-grid and decentralized solar projects.

Earlier, it was reported that the Uttarakhand Electricity Regulatory Commission (UERC) approved the extension of benchmark capital cost and generic tariff for the financial year 2019-20 for 52 MW of solar projects.

According to the benchmarks provided by the MNRE, for project capacity above 1 kW and up to 10 kW, the benchmark cost for states other than those under special category is ₹54 (~$0.76)/kW and ₹59 (~$0.83)/kW for special category states. Special category states include northeastern states, hilly states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Andaman and Nicobar Island and Lakshadweep. Similarly, for capacity above 10 kW and up to 100 kW, the benchmark cost is ₹48 (~$0.67)/kW for states not under special category and ₹53 (~$0.74)/kW for special category states. The benchmark cost for capacity above 100 kW and up to 500 kW is ₹45 (~$0.63) for other than special category states and ₹50 (~$0.70) for special category states.

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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.