The Ministry of Power has issued guidelines for the tariff-based competitive bidding process for the procurement of power from grid-connected waste-to-energy (WtE) projects using municipal solid waste-derived fuels.
The guidelines apply to new WtE projects using refuse derived fuel-WtE grade or non-recyclable dry waste and require alignment of ongoing bids with submission deadlines beyond 90 days from the date of issuance. They mandate that the implementing agency (which could be a municipal body, urban local body, or nodal agency) prepare detailed pre-feasibility studies, secure all necessary approvals, and draft key contractual documents, including the request for selection, power purchase agreement, concession agreement and land lease agreement. The bids will follow a single-stage, two-part process conducted electronically, with the winning bidder determined based on the lowest quoted tariff or lowest viability gap funding requirement. The tariff must be a single, levelised quote and should account for all costs up to the delivery point. The power purchase agreement duration will be a minimum of 20 years from the scheduled commencement of supply date with must-run status and must-consume clauses for the power procured.