The Military Engineer Services has issued a tender for the comprehensive maintenance of a three megawatt (MW) solar power plant at PMS under the Garrison Engineer Panagarh. The annual maintenance contract is estimated to cost Rs 1,09,17,000, equivalent to 10.917 million (mn), and will be completed over a period of 425 days.

The tender is open to both enlisted and unenlisted contractors, subject to eligibility conditions. Enlisted contractors must hold Class 'B' or above registration under category 'b(ii)'; firms with Class 'B' status and a valid memorandum of understanding or recognised solar ratings between 1A and 2C from agencies such as CRISIL, CARE Ratings or ICRA are eligible. Unenlisted contractors must meet enlistment criteria specified in the MES Manual of Contracts 2020 covering turnover, bank solvency and experience. Foreign firms are not permitted to bid, though Indian firms with foreign directors or nationals abroad may be considered subject to security clearance.

Interested bidders must submit a tender fee of Rs 1,000 by demand draft or banker’s cheque payable to the Garrison Engineer Panagarh, and provide an earnest money deposit of Rs 2,18,500. Enlisted contractors without a Standing Security Bond and all unenlisted contractors must provide the EMD as a deposit at call receipt. The successful bidder may convert the EMD into part of the performance security and the total performance security must be deposited within 28 days of acceptance.

Bids will be submitted online via the defence procurement portal http://www.defproc.gov.in using a two-cover system, with the first cover containing the technical bid and scanned copies of the tender fee, EMD and enlistment documents and the second cover containing the financial bid. Original hard copies of the demand draft and EMD must reach the Garrison Engineer office within seven days of the bid submission deadline. The notice indicates an effort to secure ongoing upkeep and reliable performance of military solar infrastructure.