Smelling a scam in the bidding process for the National Solar Mission, Sunita Narain-led Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) on Wednesday said that front companies floated by Lanco Infratech had grabbed not less than nine projects of 235 mw under the mission. This is about 40 % of the projects totalling 620 mw auctioned by the government during the first batch of the first phase of the solar mission.
Sources in the ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE), however, denied any violation of bidding norms. The ministry, they said, was open to investigating the charges. ??As per our records, there was no violation of bidding guidelines. However, we are ready to investigating the charges,?? a senior ministry official told FE. When contacted, a company spokesperson said: ??There is no scam. We are taking a call on the issue.??
According to CSE, based on the guaranteed feed-in tariff being paid to solar projects in the first phase of the mission, Lanco Infratech will get assured revenue of R13,000 crore from these projects over a period of 25 years. ??Lanco has bought compulsorily convertible preference shares of the front companies that will give it guaranteed ownership in future. This helps the company bypass the mission guidelines,?? said Chandra Bhushan, CSE?s deputy director general and head of its renewable energy team.
India?s ambitious Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission aims at installing 20,000 mw of grid-connected solar power by 2022. Of this, 1,000 mw will be installed in the mission?s first phase?by 2013. In the first batch of the projects were to be equitably distributed among companies so that it not only fosters competition but also provides room for innovation and growth.
In July 2010, the ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE) had issued guidelines for the selection of solar power projects. According to these, the ministry will accept only one application for one 5 mw solar PV project ??per company, including its parent, affiliate or ultimate parent or any group company??. In the case of solar thermal projects, the guidelines specify ??total capacity of solar thermal projects to be allocated to a company. shall be limited to 100 mw??.
As per the guidelines, therefore, one company was allowed to bid for and win one 100 mw solar thermal and one 5 mw solar PV project. In totality, one company was eligible to get 105 mw worth of projects.
Narain added that an RTI application to the ministry was forwarded to the NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam, which refused to give out the information on the ground that it was not in ??public interest??.
CSE added that the ministry?s non-transparent processes are responsible for the lapses in the renewable energy programme. This has resulted in Lanco winning the bids by unfair means.
??In doing so, Lanco throttled the competition and stopped genuine players from entering the market,?? the centre said.