The Central Transmission Utility of India Limited (CTUIL) has issued an advisory revising the benchmark project costs and land requirements for renewable energy projects, under the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) (Connectivity and General Network Access to the inter-State Transmission System) Regulations, 2022.
For project costs, the revised benchmark is Rs 35 million per MW for solar projects, Rs 60 million per MW for wind projects, and Rs 8 million per MWh for battery energy storage systems (BESS). The benchmark for renewable energy parks remains unchanged at Rs 5 million per MW. For land requirements, the benchmark has been set at 1.2 acres per 100 MWh for BESS projects. Further, the benchmark remains unchanged at 3 acres per MW for solar projects and 0.25 acres per MW for wind projects. CTUIL has clarified that the land must be suitable for wind projects, considering the distance between wind turbine generators. Contiguous land at 0.25 acres per MW will not be accepted for wind projects. These benchmarks will be used to assess financial closure and land compliance under Regulation 11A and other applicable eligibility requirements. The revised benchmarks may also be considered in cases where a decision on financial closure compliance is pending. Meanwhile, cases where financial closure has already been achieved or connectivity has been revoked for this reason will not be revisited based on the revised benchmarks.