MSEDCL Seeks Bids for 1,000 MW RTC Power Procurement

The Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL) has released a Request for Qualification (RFQ) for the procurement of 1,000 MW of round-the-clock (RTC) electricity through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) on a Finance, Own, and Operate (FOO) basis.

The tender is for medium-term supply, with a lumpsum tariff covering electricity supplied from any source, including renewable energy procurement, for a period from April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2028, with a required quantum of 1000 MW and a minimum quantum of 100 MW. The power delivery is specified through the Central Transmission Utility (CTU) for plants outside Maharashtra and the State Transmission Utility (STU) for plants within Maharashtra.

The  queries can be submitted until December 23, 2024, with a pre-bid meeting scheduled for December 27, 2024. The final bid submission deadline is January 16, 2025., with applications set to open the same day. Bidders are required to offer a minimum of either 50 percent of the total capacity or 100 MW, whichever is lower. All applications and bids are to be submitted online via the DEEP Portal.

 Bidders must pay a non-refundable fee of INR 6,00,000 (Rupees six lakh) plus applicable taxes as the cost of the bidding process. Additionally, a bid security of INR. 5,00,000 (Rupees five lakh) per MW of the capacity offered must be provided in the form of a demand draft, bank guarantee, or online payment. 

Moreover, bidders are required to pay INR. 500 (Rupees five hundred) per MW per requisition for the total capacity sought by the utility in a particular requisition.  While successful bidders will bear the charges for the quantum allocated to them after the bidding process, any remaining amount will be refunded within seven working days of the issuance of the Letter of Award (LOA), without interest. Similarly, non-selected bidders will have their INR 500 per MW fees refunded in the same timeframe, also without interest.

For eligibility, the Bidder must be a corporate entity and must either own and operate the Power Station from where electricity will be supplied or be a Trading Licensee. In the case of a Trading Licensee, the Bidder must have a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) or equivalent arrangement with the Developer for at least the capacity the Bidder intends to offer. Additionally, the Power Station must have assured access to fuel.

Bidders must demonstrate both technical and financial capacities. Technically, the Bidder must own and operate power generation station(s) with an installed capacity of at least twice the capacity they are willing to bid. Bidders cannot increase their capacity at the e-Reverse Auction or L1 Matching stages beyond the demonstrated technical capacity. For financial capacity, the Bidder and/or its associate must have a Net Worth equivalent to INR 1 crore per MW of the capacity they wish to bid, as of the close of the preceding financial year. If the Bidder is a Trading Licensee, the financial condition may be met jointly with the Developer or their associate.

The evaluation of bids will be conducted in two phases. In the first phase, initial qualifications will be assessed based on eligibility criteria outlined in the RFQ. Qualified bidders will then proceed to the e-Reverse Auction stage, where the lowest bidder (L1) will be awarded the contract first. If the total capacity is not fulfilled through L1, the remaining capacity may be offered to other qualified bidders through an L1 matching process.

Selected bidders are required to comply with the terms set forth in the Agreement for Procurement of Power (APP) in alignment with Section 63 of the Electricity Act, 2003. MSEDCL reserves the right to invite fresh bids or reallocate remaining capacity if the L1 matching process is unsuccessful.

The stringent financial and procedural requirements underscore MSEDCL’s commitment to ensuring a fair and transparent process while securing reliable RTC power for Maharashtra’s electricity distribution needs.