India Witnesses Record-low Solar Tariff Yet Again

The sunny state of India, Rajasthan has witnessed the lowest tariff bid of Rs 2.48/kWh in a 750 MW solar tender by SECI. Project developers will be free to choose any land for setting up of the plant as these will not be a part of the existing solar power parks. The tender was naturally oversubscribed, as Rajasthan is one of the most preferred solar states by solar developers.

The tender was more than 100% oversubscribed. The 750 MW was subscribed to 2.37 GW by potential bidders. Fortum Solar won 250 MW of solar capacity at the lowest tariff bid of Rs 2.48/kWh. Another successful bidder was Acme Solar (250 MW), who was responsible for bidding at the earlier lowest bid of Rs. 2.44 per unit that India witnessed. ReNew Power also won a bid for 110 MW solar capacity at Rs. 2.49/ kWh. The unsuccessful bidders were Azure Power, Mahindra Susten, Rays Power, and Green Infra etc.

The huge interest that this bid witnessed could be attributed to the fact that Rajasthan is one of the most solar-friendly states in India. Rajasthan receives high solar insolation and has installed a total of approximately 3 GW of solar capacity to date and also has a huge development project pipeline of 1.5 GW. The state accounts for more than 10% of India’s total installed solar capacity. According to MNRE, Rajasthan could install more than 140 GW of solar capacity alone.

“The low tariff offered by solar developers reflects their faith in the state’s potential for solar power generation,” said Sunil Bansal, general secretary of the Rajasthan Solar Association. “The faith, of course, stems from the fact that with the highest irradiation in the country, Rajasthan is the ideal place for setting up solar projects. Add to [that] the advantages of easy availability of wasteland and solar-friendly policies and incentives by the government.”

Source: PV Magazine