India’s Ministry of New And Renewable Energy (MNRE) website reports that the state of Jammu & Kashmir has a huge solar potential – a potential for some 111 GW of solar capacity. A tender, released recently, for 7.5 GW of large scale solar capacity is part of the government of India’s 23 GW grid connected solar PV projects scheme for Leh & Kargil Regions of Jammu & Kashmir, which will be implemented in several phases.
The solar projects are to be set up on ‘build own operate’ basis. Selection of solar power developers will be carried out through e-bidding followed by reverse auction.
The selected developers will also be responsible for the implementation of power transmission infrastructure up to the delivery point. The annual capacity utilization factor (CUF) of the solar project should in no case be less than 22%. The power purchased by SECI will be sold to various Indian power retaillers.
Out of the 7.5 GW capacity, 2.5 GW will be constructed in the Kargil district and 5 GW in Leh district.
Solar developers may bid for either of, or both the Kargil and Leh capacities. For Kargil district, the developers will have to submit a single bid for the capacity of 2.5 GW. For Leh district, they can bid for a minimum capacity of 2.5 GW and a maximum capacity of 5 GW.
Technical requirements
Project selection would be technology agnostic within solar PV, which means crystalline silicon or thin film or concentrating photovoltaic technology, with or without trackers, can be used. Solar power developers are also free to implement a DC or AC technology based on available grid infrastructure.
Power purchase agreement
The selected developers are required to sign power purchase agreement (PPA) with SECI within 90 days after the issue of Letter of Award. The PPAs shall be valid for a period of 35 years from the scheduled commissioning date of the projects. The project should be fully commissioned within 48 months of the effective date of PPA.
Source: pv magazine
