Reliance Energy Transmission Limited (RETL) has emerged as the lowest bidder to set up 400 kilo volt inter-State power transmission lines overing more than 1,500 km in Maharashtra and Gujarat.
The company won the bid through a process of tariff-based competitive bidding ordered early this year and successfully completed by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) on Monday.
RETL emerged the winner among the eight technically qualified bidders with a tariff about 25 per cent lower than the benchmarked cost-plus tariff.
Apart from RETL, China Light & Power-Gammon India, GMR-KEC, Tata Power, Larsen & Toubro, Lanco-Deepak Cables, and two Spanish-led consortia, Inabensa-Abengoa and CYMI-IVRCL, were in the fray.
The successful completion of tariff-based competitive bidding under the supervision of the CERC for the building of transmission systems and a healthy tariff discovery is a landmark development for the power sector, paving the way for private sector participation in transmission in a big way.
The power major had earlier approached the commission through a petition for grant of licence to build transmission system lines and sub-stations in the two states on a cost-plus basis in the manner normally executed by state-owned Power Grid.
{{/usCountry}}The power major had earlier approached the commission through a petition for grant of licence to build transmission system lines and sub-stations in the two states on a cost-plus basis in the manner normally executed by state-owned Power Grid.
{{/usCountry}}The commission had, however, directed Power Grid to invite tariff based competitive bids for the two states so that all interested parties had equal opportunity to participate and competition could be brought about in the setting up of transmission facilities in the country.
Email Rajendran Manoharan: rajendran.manoharan@hindustantimes.com