SECI Extends Deadline for its Tender for 7.5 GW Solar Projects in Leh & Kargil 

SECI has extended the bid submission deadline for its tender for the selection of SPDs for setting up of 7.5 GW solar projects in Leh & Kargil

The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has extended the bid submission deadline for its tender for the selection of Solar Power Developers (SPDs) for setting up of 7500 MW (7.5 GW) grid-connected solar power projects (including implementation of power transmission and evacuation infrastructure) in Leh & Kargil Districts, Jammu & Kashmir.

The last date for bid submission has been extended to January 31, 2021. The tender was first issued on December 31, 2020.

At the time of issuance, it was announced that the projects are a part of the scheme approved by the government for setting up of 23 GW Grid-connected solar PV Projects in the Leh & Kargil regions of Jammu & Kashmir. The total capacity is targeted to be implemented in several phases, the first phase being the implementation of a 2500 MW grid-connected capacity at Suru in Zanskar, 245 km east of Kargil, and 5000 MW capacity at the Morey plains, some 215 km east of Leh.

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SECI will enter into the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the successful bidders for the purchase of solar power for a period of 35 years.

In August, Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day speech reinstated the Centre’s aim to establish the 7.5 GW solar power park in Ladakh to set the union territory on course to becoming carbon neutral.

In his speech, Modi said that “Ladakh has several specialties. Not only do we have to preserve them, we have to nurture them as well. As Sikkim has made its mark as an organic state in the northeast, Ladakh — Leh and Kargil — can also create their own niche as a carbon-neutral regions,” as he mentioned about the proposed solar park project.

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It is believed that the project has been planned with an estimated outlay of Rs 45,000 crore and the project is set for commissioning in 2023, saving 12,750 tonnes of carbon emissions in every year of operation.

According to local reports, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) is moving to partly fund the linked transmission line, the cost of which was making power unaffordable. “The transmission project is being included in the Centre’s Green Energy Corridor Phase-II for viability gap funding (VGF),” as per Power Minister RK Singh. Which will make the transmission project eligible for up to 40 percent Viability Gap Funding (VGF) from the Centre.