NTPC Green Energy Limited (NGEL), a wholly owned subsidiary of NTPC Limited, has issued an abridged Invitation for Bids (IFB) for the development of a large-scale Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project at the NTPC REL Khavda Solar Plant in Gujarat. The project involves the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) of a total BESS capacity of 3,300 MWh and will be awarded through a domestic competitive bidding process.

The project has been divided into four separate blocks. The first three blocks will each have a capacity of 300 MW/900 MWh, while the fourth block will have a capacity of 200 MW/600 MWh. Each BESS block will be connected at the 33 kV level of a designated 300 MW solar plant. The battery storage systems will be integrated with the existing solar infrastructure to support grid operations and improve renewable energy utilization.

According to the tender document, NGEL plans to finance the project through its own resources and borrowings. The selected contractor will be responsible for the complete execution of the project on a turnkey basis. This includes design, engineering, manufacturing, supply, transportation, storage, installation, testing, commissioning, and integration of the battery storage systems with the solar plants and the grid network.

The tender specifies that the BESS and battery systems must have a design life of 25 years based on one charge-discharge cycle per day. The batteries offered under the project must be capable of completing at least 10,000 operational cycles during their lifetime. Bidders are also required to consider transformer and transmission losses while determining the final nameplate capacity of the systems.

NGEL has included strict performance requirements in the tender. The selected bidder must ensure a minimum dispatchable capacity of 92 percent at the Point of Injection (POI) throughout the 15-year operational period. The system must begin with 100 percent capacity at the Commercial Operation Date and maintain 95 percent capacity during the first year. Any additional battery augmentation required to meet these performance guarantees will be the responsibility of the contractor.

The battery systems must also maintain a minimum monthly Round Trip Efficiency (RTE) of 80 percent, including auxiliary consumption, and ensure an annual availability of 98 percent. In addition, the contractor will be required to provide comprehensive Operation and Maintenance (O&M) services for a period of 15 years. An Energy Management System (EMS) will also be installed to support operation under different grid conditions.

The bidding process will follow a Single Stage Two Envelope system consisting of Techno-Commercial and Price Bids, followed by a Reverse Auction. The bidding documents will be available for download from June 5 to June 15, 2026. A pre-bid conference is scheduled for June 17, while the final bid submission deadline is June 25, 2026. Techno-Commercial bids will be opened on the same day. Details regarding Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) and Performance Bank Guarantee (PBG) will be provided in the complete bidding documents.

Related