SECI Launches Tender for 1.2GW of Solar with 600 MW/3,600 MWh of Storage

Image: Greg M. Cooper, Borrego Solar

India's Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has initiated a major tender seeking developers to set up 1.2 Gigawatts (GW) of interstate transmission system (ISTS)-connected solar power projects bundled with a substantial 600 Megawatt / 3,600 Megawatt-hour (3.6 GWh) energy storage system. The projects will be developed on a Build-Own-Operate (BOO) basis.

Successful bidders will enter into 25-year Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with SECI for the solar energy generated. Acting as an intermediary nodal agency, SECI will subsequently sell this power to various off-takers (buying entities) across India through back-to-back power sale agreements.

Bidding developers must commit to a cumulative project capacity between a minimum of 50 MW and a maximum of 600 MW. Crucially, developers are obligated to install energy storage capacity equivalent to at least 0.5 MW / 3 MWh for every 1 MW of solar project capacity secured under the PPA. This energy storage system (ESS) component can either be owned directly by the solar developer or procured through a separate tie-up with a third-party provider.

SECI has granted significant flexibility regarding project location(s). Developers can choose sites at their own "discretion, cost, risk and responsibility," with a single project permitted to span multiple locations featuring different power delivery points. While the ESS must be co-located with the project infrastructure, SECI clarified that for projects spread over multiple sites, the ESS needs only be co-located with at least one of these project components.