India: 8 GW of Solar Projects Tendered in March

It was a good month for solar tenders, which increased by nearly 377% (four times) in March 2020 as compared to February, despite countrywide lockdown in the second half of March 2020.

A total of 8 GW of solar projects were announced in March, while 1.7 GW of solar projects were announced in February. The total capacity tendered during March also saw an increase of 50% during the same period last year.

The auctions declined by 75% in March as compared to the previous month, with only 350 MW of auctions as compared to 1.4 GW in February. The auction activities were down by 53% as compared to the same period last year.

The largest tender was issued by the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), a request for selection for renewable energy developers to supply 5 GW of round-the-clock power from grid-connected renewable power projects, bundled with power from coal-based thermal projects in the country. The minimum project capacity a developer can bid for is 500 MW, and the maximum is 5 GW. A single bidder can be allocated a maximum of 5 GW of projects, according to the terms of the RfS.