Request for Proposals (RfP) of Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI) issued on 04.08.2025, [one month] to select a supplier of the 600 MW / 1200 MWh Battery Energy Storage System ( BESS ) under the DC Package. The chosen contractor will also be in charge of designing, engineering, production, testing, supplying, erecting, and commissioning as well as maintaining during a period of 15 years. This project is proposed at Kolimigundla, Nandyal District, Andhra Pradesh, which is interconnected with the Kurnool-3 substation through the Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS).
The project is part of Tranche 2 of the Market Component of the Central Government Viability Gap Funding Scheme with a funding allocation of 30 GWh by 2028 of standalone BESS capacity. Under the scheme, SECI has been allowed to set up a 600 MW/1200 MWh capacity. The bidding method will be a single-stage and two-envelope system that will be done on the ISN-ETS portal. It will be awarded on a full contract basis to only one bidder together with its parent or group companies.
The full scope also covers engineering, testing and commissioning all the way up to the PCS output terminals. The project must be delivered in 11 months after the effective date of the contract and must be commissioned in 14 months. The pre-bid meeting, bid submission and techno-commercial bid opening will be after the dates indicated on the ISN-ETS portal. Other leadership events to be scheduled later are e-reverse auctions.
The processing fee of the bid costs 25, 000 Rupees (plus GST). The Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) is 421,600 per MW which has to be deposited as a Bank Guarantee, Payment on Order Instrument or Insurance Surety Bond. The Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) will not be required to pay the RfP cost, bid processing fee and EMD in case they fulfill the demanded financial conditions.
The bidder will be required to come up with Contract Performance Guarantee capable of 10 percent of the contract price, which will expire 27 months after the Notice of Award. The optional payment terms involve 10 percent payment against bank guarantee, 70 percent against supply and acceptance, 10 percent on testing and commissioning, and 10 percent in operational acceptance. Maintenance period will be on the basis of performance done quarterly.
Commissioning should entail pre-commissioning inspection, tests and remedial actions on defects. There will be a 12 months Defect Liability Period with a 5-year latent defect liability. Performance testing and submission of as-built documentation, spare inventory and approvals will be followed by an Operational Acceptance.
Liquidated damages involving 0.5 percent per week, at most 5 percent of the value of the unexecuted amount, will be charged in the event of delay. These damages can be used to cover any delay in either supply or commissioning, and SECI can recover such amount or terminate the contract in case of delays beyond permissible limits.
The supplier that has been chosen should be able to coordinate the manufacturing, transportation, testing of materials, commissioning and maintenance of the agreed-upon stringent timelines and quality requirements. The detailed requirements on the proposal shall be the specifications of how they shall be packed, forwarded, transported using roads, insured, and stored in the place of the material.
