India to award 7.2 GW of offshore wind power in Tamil Nadu in 2024 and 2025

India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has issued a public notice for bidding for the allocation of offshore wind development areas off the coast of the Tamil Nadu region, with 7,215 MW of capacity in the mix.
The country issued the call for seven locations off the Tamil Nadu region in the south of the country, and the proposed zones cover an area of 1,443 square kilometers, capable of supporting more than 7 GW of capacity.

The announcement outlines four areas, namely 2, 3, 4 and 7, which will open for bidding early next year, with a total capacity of 4,140 MW to be offered to developers.

It is planned to offer an additional 3,075 MW of capacity spread across three sites in 2025.
The MNRE appointed the National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE) to carry out the bidding process.

The offer will be based on a two-stage envelope where the first envelope will be the techno-commercial offer and the second envelope will be the financial offer.

The lease of the seabed area to the developer will initially be for a period of five years, with the option of an additional year.

The developer will be responsible for conducting site surveys, constructing and commissioning the project within the time period mentioned above.

Following commissioning, the project lease will extend for the operational life of the development.

On August 17, MNRE, the ministry responsible for offshore wind development in India, published a new strategy detailing the areas to be awarded and also proposing auction models to allocate sites for the development and construction of wind energy projects. Marine.

The areas and sites identified by MNRE and NIWE are estimated to have the potential to host a total of around 14 GW of installed offshore wind capacity, with a further 22 GW estimated to be available to be tapped through unsolicited leasing applications.

Adnan Memija