Monday, January 06, 2014: India has extended the deadline of solar auction bids for the second time. This extension took place after the solar developers expressed their concern about cash-strapped state utilities unable to pay for power.
The deadline has been extended by almost a month and now the date set is 20 January, stated Solar Energy Corp of India, which is set to auction 750 megawatts of photovoltaic capacity. This announcement was made on the organisation’s website. It is worth mentioning here that the deadline was earlier extended from 29 November to 28 December.
This is the first action by the National Solar Mission of India since 2011. It will also offer grants of Rs 18.75 billion ($300 million) to cover as much as 30 per cent of project costs. Developers are required to submit their bids by 20 January specifying the funds that they are seeking and the lowest bidders will win.
According to Bridge to India Energy Pvt, a New Delhi-based solar advisory, the government decided to extend the deadline after developers asked Solar Energy Corp. for protection against default by state distribution utilities that will buy power from the projects. May 2015 will be the new deadline for the completion of projects.
