Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd concluded a competitive tender for the procurement of power from 625 megawatts (MW) of solar photovoltaic projects with the lowest discovered tariff at Rs 2.34 per kWh. The bidding was described as aggressive and the discovered rate positions the tender among competitive utility scale auctions in the market. The announcement noted that projects will be developed without energy storage.

Welspun Renewable Energy and NLC India emerged as the successful developers, each securing 300 MW of capacity. The tender had been launched by the state distribution company in November of the previous year and sought bidders willing to set up projects on a build, own and operate basis. Developers may select sites anywhere in India and will be responsible for land acquisition and implementation within the agreed project timelines.

Procurement conditions require that solar PV modules for the tender be sourced from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy Approved List of Models and Manufacturers, List one. Modules must use cells from models and manufacturers listed under List two for solar PV cells, ensuring compliance with domestic sourcing and quality norms. The developer agreements will specify technical and performance obligations and enforcement provisions for non compliance.

The discovered tariff and the allocation of large blocks of capacity are likely to influence upcoming auctions and investor sentiment in the utility scale solar segment. Market participants will monitor project execution, module supply chains and grid connectivity milestones as indicators of implementation risk. Stakeholders will watch delivery schedules closely. GUVNL will proceed to finalise power purchase agreements with the selected developers and oversee the contractual milestones through to the commissioning process.