The meeting arranged by NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN) inviting pre-bids for the Phase I Batch II of 350 MW solar power generation under the auspices of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission was held recently.
The meeting was attended by invitees from the Indian solar industry, who interacted with the officials from the government to provide their suggestions on PPA and RFS documents and other rules initiated by the government officials for the upcoming solar bids.
Solar Assembly Line at Headway Solar. Credit: Headway Solar
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and NVVN officials made a presentation on the changes made in the bidding process and net worth calculations process by excluding the share premium of a company. The move was questioned by Mr. Sunil Jain from Green Infra who claimed that the exclusion of share premium in the calculations amounts led to a digression from the company’s act of 1956. The government officials cited how the falsification of documents by a company during the bidding process led to the introduction of a stringent calculation mechanism, which contributed to the changes in the Net Worth criteria in the bidding process. Azure Power, a well-known solar industry in India and supported by a global finance company, explained how the Net-Worth calculation procedure has handicapped the company to bid for even 1 MW.
The meeting also brought into foray the sentiments of the Indian- based solar manufacturing companies such as Indo Solar and TATA BP who promised the continuous availability of crystalline solar cells and modules expressing concern about the import of thin-film by the developers instead of complying with the domestic content requirement. It also discussed controversial clauses of PPA, increasing the 50 MW cap, allotment of the last project to maintain the total project cap to 350 MW, deadlines and net worth criteria.
Headway Solar also participated in the meeting on behalf of its Indian clients and the meeting also saw delegates participating from South Korea who were interested to invest in the solar power generation sector in India.