Tata Power Receives LoA From GUVNL for 60 MW Solar Project in Gujarat

Tata Power has received an LoA from GUVNL to develop a 60 MW solar project in the state of Gujarat.

Tata Power, one of India’s largest integrated power companies, has announced that the Company has received a Letter of Award (LoA) from Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (GUVNL) on March 26, 2021, to develop a 60 MW solar project in the state of Gujarat.

The energy will be supplied to GUVNL under a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), valid for a period of 25 years from the scheduled commercial operation date. The Company has won this capacity in a bid announced by GUVNL in January 2021. The project has to be commissioned within 18 months from the date of execution of the PPA.

Dr. Praveer Sinha, CEO & MD, Tata Power, said, “we are proud to announce that we have been awarded 60 MW solar project in Gujarat, and are thankful to the Government of Gujarat and the officials at GUVNL for this opportunity. With this award, the cumulative capacity under development in Gujarat would be 580 MW. We are delighted to contribute towards the realisation of our country’s commitment towards clean and green energy through solar power generation.”

The plant is expected to generate about 156 MUs of energy per year and will annually offset approximately 156 Million Kg of CO₂.

Tata Power’s renewable capacity will increase to 4,007 MW, out of which 2,687 MW is operational and 1,320 MW is under implementation including 60 MW won under this PPA.

The auction for the 500 MW solar capacity by GUVNL was the first solar project auction to be conducted in India since the Basic Customs Duty on Solar Cells and Modules from April 1, 2022, was announced earlier in the month by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE). The auction fetched a winning bid i.e. lowest tariff of Rs 2.2 per unit (or Rs 2.20/kWh), and the entire capacity was awarded to five bidders.

NTPC Renewable Energy won 150 MW capacity, Actis-backed Sprng Ujjvala Energy won 120 MW, Coal India bagged 100 MW capacity, and Tata Power arm TP Saurya was allocated 60 MW. All four bidders were awarded project capacities after submitting or matching the L1 tariff of Rs 2.2/kWh. SJVN Limited was awarded the remainder of the 70 MW capacity after it had submitted a proposal for developing 100 MW worth of solar projects with a tariff of Rs 2.21/kWh.

In January, Tata Power Solar had announced that it had received a Letter of Award (LoA) to build a 95 MW ground-mounted solar PV project for Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Limited (GSECL). The order value of the project is approximately Rs 460 crores. The Commercial operation date for this project is set for April 2022.