India’s state-owned hydropower company SJVN has awarded an EPC contract for a 1GW PV project to Tata Power Solar Systems Ltd. (Tata Power Solar). It is the largest EPC contract for a PV project in India to date. Tata Power Solar received the official letter of award (LoA) in early May. This story was first reported by Indian news outlets and renewable energy news websites.
Located in Bikaner District of the Indian state of Rajasthan, the project will deploy ground-mounted PV systems and entail an investment of around INR 54.92 billion (USD 720 million). Also, the project is part of a 12GW central public sector undertaking (CPSU) scheme initiated by the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA). SJVN was awarded 1GW in October, and its bid parameters included provisioning of volatility gap fund (VGF).
According to the EPC contract and the information provided by other news outlets, Tata Power Solar is responsible for the end-to-end delivery of the 1GW project to SJVN. The scope of work encompasses land acquisition through outright purchase, project construction, and setup of power evacuation system up to the substation that is connected to the Interstate Transmission System (ISTS). Furthermore, Tata Solar Power will provide O&M service for three years after the commissioning of the project. EPC work is expected to last 24 months and finish in May 2024. SJVN estimates that the project will generate about “2,400 million units” of power in the first year of operation and a cumulative total of about “56,800 million units” over a 25-year period.