Private companies such as SEI, Azure Power India and ACME have won most of the solar projects auctioned under the first batch of Phase-II of the National Solar Mission.
The financial bids for 750 MW new photovoltaic capacities were opened on Friday.
SEI and Azure Power bagged 100 MW of projects each, while ACME got nearly 80 MW of new capacities.
Other companies that bagged projects include Tata Power Renewable Energy (35 MW), IL&FS Energy Development (40 MW), Solairedirect Energy India (30 MW), Gujarat Power Corporation (10 MW), Hero Solar Energy (20 MW) and Today Homes and Infrastructure (40 MW). Among those who failed to bag any projects were Welspun Renewables Energy, Shapoorji Pallonji Solar and Renew Solar Power.
120 projects
The latest bidding saw a good response for more than 120 projects from nearly 68 companies. Of these, five companies were disqualified on technical grounds and 63 were asked to submit price bids.
Companies such as SEI and ACME bid under different subsidiaries.
Speaking to Business Line, Tarun Kapoor, Joint Secretary (National Solar Mission) in the Ministry for New and Renewable Energy, said: “Allotments are expected to be completed by next week, once the Board of the Solar Energy Corporation of India has approved the qualified bidders.”
13-month deadline
The winners will be given a month’s time to sign power purchase agreements.
The solar projects have to be completed within 13 months of the date of signing of the agreements.
After the bidding process was done, Manoj Kumar Upadhyay, Chairman of ACME Solar, said: “This has further strengthened our position as the leading solar power producer in the country.”
ACME Solar is a joint venture involving ACME, France-based EDF Energies Nouvelles (EDF EN) and Luxembourg-based EREN. The venture has an existing portfolio of 67.5 MW and is aiming at a solar power generation portfolio of 1,000 MW by 2017.
In the second phase, the Government has offered projects under two batches of 375 MW each. In the first batch, developers must procure equipment from domestic manufacturers; in the second, there are no such restrictions.
Azure grabbed the maximum projects under the first category, while ACME emerged as the largest developer in the open category.
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