Gridco may seek re-tender of 125 Mw solar capacity as bidders won't budge

Aditya Birla Renewables was lowest bidder in earlier tenders, with a quote of Rs 2.79 a unit; Gridco has been persuading L2 and L3 bidders to mellow their quotes, but to no avail

Gridco, the Odisha government-controlled bulk power procurer-cum-trader, has set its sights on fresh tendering of 125 Mw of solar power capacities.

The step could mean a setback to the maiden solar auctions conducted by Gridco, in which 200 Mw was offered with a green-shoe option embedded in tenders to ramp up capacity to 300 Mw. The tenders were oversubscribed by over four times and Aditya Birla Renewables emerged the lowest bidder with a price quote of Rs 2.79 per unit. But L2 and L3 bidders quoted higher tariffs, unnerving Gridco.

Gridco has been persuading the L2 and L3 bidders to mellow their price quotes, but to no avail. With the bidders either dilly-dallying or refusing, Gridco is likely to scrap the tenders for 125 Mw capacities.

“We have tried our best to impress upon the L2 and L3 bidders through a proposal to develop the project at the lowest bid rate of Rs 2.79 per Mw. While three companies have declined for developing their bid capacity, one more is dilly dallying its decisions. We will cancel the proposal sent to them”, said an official.

However, the official claimed that Aditya Birla Renewables is free to develop another 100 Mw through the green-Shoe option.

“We may go for a re-tendering for more capacities including the cancelled capacity. However, a decision in this regard is yet to be taken”, added the official.

Gridco has been nudging the L2 and L3 bidders to scale down their quotes to the L1 level. Its concerns stem from the differential between L1 and the other bidders. Three players- are tied up at the L2 level with a price quote of Rs 3.19 per unit- Sukhbir Agro Energy Ltd, city based Gupta Power Infrastructure Ltd and Eden Renewable Varenne Private Ltd, bagging 25 Mw, 20 Mw and 50 Mw capacities respectively. Acme Solar finished as the L3 bidder, quoting Rs 3.20 for 50 Mw unit.

As per Gridco officials, it is constrained to commit long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) where tariff exceeds Rs three per unit. Gridco has been tapping more competitive sources of sourcing solar power. The power trader in August had signed a power sales agreement with the Solar Electrification Corporation of India (SECI). The pact is to buy 300 Mw from SECI’s upcoming auctions at an agreed price of Rs 2.57 per cent. The power is tipped to be fed to the state grid from 2019-20 end. According to the terms of the agreement with SECI, Gridco can draw this solar power without forking out transmission or wheeling charges.

Soon, Gridco is aiming to sign a PPA spanning 25 years with Aditya Birla Renewables. The company which secured 75 Mw capacity proposes to split into five 15 Mw projects, each coming up at a separate location. Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Ltd (Idco) will facilitate land allotment for the solar installations.