IOC's green hydrogen tender: Only two bids after first cancellation

Indian Oil Corporation's second attempt to secure bids for India's first green hydrogen plant at Panipat has received only two bids, amid allegations of favouritism and restrictive pre-bid conditions

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has got only two bids to construct the country’s first green hydrogen plant at the company’s refinery in Panipat, Haryana, the Economic Times reported citing industry sources.

The bids were made for the second tender for the project – the earlier one was cancelled due to allegations of preferential treatment.

One of the bidders is GH4India, a joint venture formed by IOC, ReNew, and engineering giant Larsen & Toubro to develop green hydrogen, its derivatives, and associated renewable assets. The other bidder, Neometrix Engineering, based in Noida, specialises in turnkey projects and has completed multiple EPC projects for IOC, the report said.

Initiative to fix green hydrogen price

The tender marks India's first attempt to determine the price of green hydrogen through a bidding process. However, some major engineering and industrial gas firms that showed initial interest did not submit bids, similar to last year’s tender, which was cancelled after allegations of favouritism and restrictive pre-bid conditions favouring GH4India, the business daily reported. The previous tender was challenged in the Delhi High Court by an industry association, claiming anti-competitive conditions.

IOC said that the second tender process included multiple extensions to allow bidders ample time to submit their offers.

Some 30 entities obtained pre-bid documents in May, including Indian companies like Inox-Air Products, Acme, Tata Projects, and NTPC, as well as global firms like Siemens, Petronas/Gentari, and EDF. The t bids were opened recently, with the date for the price bid to be announced later, said the newspaper.

Why are bidders apprehensive?

They have questioned the eligibility criteria, particularly the requirement for experience in running hydrogen systems, EPC, and electrolysers. The criteria stipulate that a qualified bidder must have EPC experience and operate a refinery, petrochemical, or fertiliser plant for at least 12 months.

This has led some prospective bidders to request deadline extensions to form joint ventures with industrial gas producers, as only a few have the necessary scale and experience.

For instance, Air Products has a joint venture with Inox Air, and Linde India (formerly BOC India) has been operating in the country for 80 years. In contrast, French major Air Liquide has a limited presence in the Indian industrial gas sector.

In the first tender attempt, the main issue was the right of first refusal clause, which bidders argued was against public procurement rules by favouring a public-private joint venture. IOC has not yet responded to these concerns in the current tender process, said the report.