The Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) has approved the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking’s (BEST) to procure 400 MW wind-solar hybrid power from the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI).
In a petition, BEST had asked MERC’s approval to sign power sale agreement (PSA) for 400 MW of wind-solar hybrid power from SECI at a tariff of Rs 2.41 (around USD 0.0326)/kWh discovered through competitive bidding plus SECI’s trading margin of Rs 0.07 (about USD 0.0094)/kWh for 25 years.
The power was to be procured from SECI’s 1,110 MW interstate transmission (ISTS) connected wind-solar hybrid power projects (Tranche-III).
In the auction held in December 2020, ABC Renewable Energy, a subsidiary of Axis Energy, was awarded 380 MW of projects, Adani Renewable Energy Holding Eight was awarded 600 MW, and AMP Energy was awarded 130 MW for Rs 2.41 (0.0326)/kWh. ACME Solar quoted Rs 2.42 (around USD 0.0327)/kWh for 300 MW of projects but was only awarded 90 MW under the bucket-filling method.
Initially, SECI had approached BEST for 600 MW of wind-solar hybrid power at Rs 2.41 (0.0326)/kWh plus SECI’s trading margin of Rs 0.07(around USD 0.0094)/kWh. However, BEST consented to the signing of PSA for 400 MW.
As per BEST’s submission, the power supply from the proposed hybrid projects is expected to start from FY24. The renewable energy requirement for FY24 is 968 MU, while the proposed hybrid project will be supplying 1,371 MU which is more than the power required to meet the RPO.
The Commission also considered the rate of Rs 2.48 (about USD 0.033)/kWh, which is lower than the variable cost of the power sourced from thermal stations and lower than the short-term power procured from other sources. The excess power will help BEST to lower its procurement cost and meet future RPO targets.