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Karnataka Solar Power Park

India Issues 200 MW Solar Power Storage Tender

written by saurabh

India has issued its second solar power storage tender as it looks to expand its capabilities to efficiently absorb the rapidly increasing solar power capacity in the existing grid.

The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) issued tender to set up 200 MW solar power capacity along with storage facility. The power generation capacity shall come up in Karnataka’s Pavagada solar power park. Projects will be auctioned in the size of 50 MW each with each project having storage capacity of 2.5 MWh.

Pavagada solar power park is among around 25 solar power parks approved by the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy. The planned capacity of the solar power park is 5 GW which would make it among the largest power projects in India.

NTPC Limited has already auctioned 500 MW capacity for the solar park. The capacity was allocated to six developers who are free to choose Indian or imported solar power modules for their projects. Adani Power, Tata Power Renewable Energy and Fortum India secured 100 MW capacity each at tariff of Rs 4.79/kWh (US¢7.9/kWh).

More capacity is expected to be auctioned soon by NTPC Limited as well as SECI.

This new tender comes only days after SECI issued the first solar power storage tender of 100 MW capacity for the 1 GW Kadapa solar power park in Andhra Pradesh.

August 31, 2016 0 comment

India To Begin Construction Of 5 GW Solar Power Park Soon

written by saurabh

Construction on one of India’s largest, if not the largest, solar power park is expected to being soon.

The Minister for Energy in the southern state of Karnataka recently told media outlets that construction on a proposed 5 GW solar power park will begin soon. The Pavagada solar power park is among the more than two dozen solar power parks with cumulative capacity of almost 20 GW approved by the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy.

The Pavagada solar power park is still in its very initial stages of development. While a total capacity of 5 GW has been proposed, plans for only 2 GW have been shared in the public so far. India’s largest power generation company NTPC Limited and Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) will jointly auction and allocate the 2 GW capacity in the project size of 50 MW each.

Five power distribution utilities in the southern state of Karnataka recently signed an agreement with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to acquire 1 GW of solar power from a solar power park currently under development. The utilities will purchase electricity from SECI at Rs 4.50/kWh (US¢6.7/kWh) for a period of 25 years.

Recently, NTPC auctioned 500 MW capacity for the solar park. The capacity was allocated to six developers who are free to choose Indian or imported solar power modules for their projects. Adani Power, Tata Power Renewable Energy and Fortum India secured 100 MW capacity each at tariff of Rs 4.79/kWh (US¢7.9/kWh).

NTPC will also hold 100 MW auction wherein developers will be mandated to use only Indian-made solar PV modules. Apart from that NTPC has been designated to auction an additional 1 GW capacity. Power generated from this capacity will be bundled with power generated from NTPC’s own thermal power projects.

Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) will also auction 400 MW capacity for the solar power park. This capacity will be allocated under the Viability Gap Funding scheme wherein developers will bid for capital cost support needed and sell power at a fixed tariff of Rs Rs 4.43/kWh (US¢6.6/kWh).

August 28, 2016 0 comment

Competitive Solar Auction In India Keeps Tariffs Under US¢7.2/kWh

written by saurabh

Indian and international project developers continue to fight it out in one of the fastest growing solar power markets in the world.

The recent solar power auction in the Indian state of Karnataka saw one of the most competitive bidding in recent times. The auction allocated 500 MW capacity of the planned 2 GW solar power park part of the ambitious ultra mega solar power project scheme announced by the Indian government.

A total of 6 developers managed to win rights to develop the first phase of the solar power park. The winning bids were all within a range less than one US cent. The winning bids were between Rs 4.78/kWh to Rs 4.80/kWh (US¢7.2/kWh).

Interestingly, 5 of the 6 project developers were Indian companies while many major foreign developers, including SunEdison and Canadian Solar, failed to the cut.

Among the successful bidders, Adani Enterprises, Fortum Group (from Finland), ACME Solar, and Tata Power secured 100 MW project each while RattanIndia Power and ReNew Power Ventures won 50 MW project each.

Such a positive response to one of the first auctions under the ultra mega solar power scheme is very encouraging for the Indian government. The scheme is one of the mainstays of the Indian National Solar Mission which aims for 100 GW operational solar power capacity by March 2022.

Continued and active participation by the Indian developers is also a testament to the fact that it is not just the foreign developers that are propelling the low-cost solar power revolution in India.

April 26, 2016 0 comment

Foreign Developers Fail To Make The Cut In India 500 MW Solar Power Auction

written by saurabh

Six project developers wrapped up 500 MW solar power tender with difference in their tariff bids of less than one US cent.

Interestingly, only a single foreign project developer could make the cut. Foreign project developers, like SkyPower Global, SunEdison and Fortum, have so far led the record-breaking solar power tariffs in India.

SkyPower Global is not believed to have participated in the auction while SunEdison could not submit a winning bid. Fortum Group managed to secure rights to develop 100 MW project at Rs 4.79/kWh (US¢7.2/kWh). Canadian Solar also participated in the bidding process but failed to quote a low enough tariff bid. The projects shall be part of the 2 GW ultra mega solar power project coming up in the southern state of Karnataka.

Apart from Fortum Group, all other winning developers are based in India. RattanIndia Power and ReNew Power Ventures won bids for 50 MW capacity each. Adani Enterprises, ACME and Tata Power secured the rights to develop 100 MW capacity each.

Participation by SunEdison should come as nothing short of a surprise. The company secured rights to develop a 500 MW project in Andhra Pradesh last year at Rs 4.63/kWh (US¢6.9/kWh) but is believed to be having problems implementing the project due to its poor financial condition.

April 20, 2016 0 comment