SEI, ACME, among winners of national solar mission projects

The government today opened the financial bids for developing 750 MW solar energy capacity under the national solar mission, with private players such as SEI, Azure Power and ACME cornering substantial number of projects.
These players had bid for projects under the first batch of the second phase of ambitious Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM).
SEI as well as Azure Power India have bagged projects of about 100 MW each, while ACME Solar would develop 80 MW solar capacity under this programme.
Indicating strong interest, bids for 2,170 MW solar capacity were received as against the 750 MW capacity on offer under the second phase.

Half of the total capacity would be developed using domestic content while the remaining half is in open category, where imported equipment could also be used.
In a statement, ACME Solar said it has been selected as developer for 80 MW solar PV projects. The firm has emerged as the largest developer in the open category.

ACME Solar Chairman Manoj Kumar Upadhyay said the success of JNNSM'S second phase is a momentous occasion for all stakeholders in achieving the goal of clean and green energy.
He said the company looks forward to support from all stakeholders to help "us actively contribute" in achieving the target of generating 22,000 MW solar power by year 2022.

ACME Solar is a joint venture between ACME, French entity EDF Energies Nouvelles and Luxembourg-based EREN.
As many as 63 companies were eligible to make financial bids under the second phase after they cleared the techno- commercial evaluation stage.
Solar Energy Corporation of India, under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, is the nodal agency for the second phase of JNNSM.
Earlier this month, the US challenged the mandatory use of domestic equipment for projects under India's solar mission.
It alleged that the requirement was discriminatory and against international norms, including World Trade Organisation (WTO) laws, and affects US solar panel manufacturers.