In what is probably the first tender floated for an ultra mega solar power project in India, central and state agencies in India have invited bids to set up 750 MW of solar power capacity in the state of Madhya Pradesh.
The 750 MW solar power park will be one of the biggest in India once fully operational. The project is among the first ultra mega solar power projects approved by the central government under its revised solar power target of 100 GW by March 2022.
The solar power park shall be developed in 3 phases of 250 MW capacity each spread over a total of 1,500 hectares. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation shall sign a power purchase agreement, likely for 150 MW, while the remainder capacity shall be procured by the state utility. Power generation from the first phase is expected to start from June 2017 while the entire capacity is expected to be fully operational by December 2017.
Earlier this year, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) signed an agreement with the government of the state of Madhya Pradesh in India to provide assistance in the implementation of the solar power park. The IFC will extend its global expertise to structure and implement the transaction to help attract private investments of about $750 million. IFC’s work on this project will be supported by its partnership with Australia’s Department of Foreign Trade.
The government of Madhya Pradesh has already approved the project following which the process of land acquisition was initiated. The project is expected to required a total investment of around $500-600 million as per the current capital cost requirements.
