Govt Amends Bidding Norms For HVDC Projects Under ISTS

The Ministry of Power has now issued an order amending its Standard Bidding Document for the procurement of Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS) power through tariff-based competitive bidding (TBCB) process under the High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission system.  

The new order proposed modifying para 2.1.2 to make changes to the eligibility criteria of the bidders. The ministry said that many private transmission developers earlier could not fulfill the technical requirement for bidding on HVDC systems through the TBCB route.  

“It has come to the notice of the ministry that many private transmission developers do not fulfill the technical requirement for bidding of HVDC systems through the TBCB route, as per the specified qualifying criterion with respect to HVDC systems (i.e, aggregate capital cost of projects/aggregate payments received (CAPEX) to be met by the bidding company of lead member of the bidding consortium) incorporated in the Standard Request for Proposal (RfP),” the order said. 

As per the proposed norms in the order, the government has increased the criteria of experience in developing projects in the infrastructure sector from five years to ten years. It also amended the lines in the document where it had mandated that the technically qualified entity should have received the payment from its clients for the work it completed in the last five years. The new norms increased this time limit from five years to 10 years.  

The earlier norms said that the bidders’ capital expenditure of each project should not be less than a threshold amount. The new order said that the word “each project” in these lines would be replaced with “at least one project.” 

 Another norm that was changed was related to individual project experience. Earlier norms mandated that individual project experience be calculated @20 percent of the calculated aggregate capital cost of the projects. The new norms proposed that after the word “individual project experience,” additional conditions of “of at least one project” should be added.  

The ministry said this relaxation in technical requirement of the HVDC system would be effective for two years from the date of issue of the order.