ISLAMABAD: K-Electric on Tuesday declared a Canadian renewable energy firm — JCM Power — as the lowest bidder for offering Rs8.9189 per unit average tariff for a 220-megawatt hybrid wind-solar project at Dhabeji, Sindh.

“With Rs8.9189 per unit, JCM Power has emerged as the bidder with the lowest proposed tariff, establishing a new precedent in the country’s renewable space”, the KE said.

The actual bid is around 3.0899 US cents for a term of 25 years, involving major components of 80pc US dollar, 13pc Karachi Interbank Offered Rate (Kibor) and 7pc Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) – the replacement for London Interbank Offered Rate (Libor).

Earlier this month, KE announced that it had received seven bids for Pakistan’s first 220MW hybrid wind/solar project in Dhabeji. KE said it was pioneering a competitive bidding process in the renewable energy sector following the regulator’s clearance in the first half of 2024.

KE’s chief executive Mooni Alvi celebrated the outcome on social media platform X, “Alhamdulillah! KE breaks its own record! Lowest tariff bid of PKR 8.91/unit received for Pakistan’s 1st 220MW hybrid project. A major step towards sustainable energy via competitive bidding. We’re breaking the dependence on costlier fuels, enabling access to affordable electricity”.

The KE’s earlier bidding for 150MW solar power project in Balochistan attracted around Rs11.2 per unit indicative tariff in August, subject to some variation because the bidding was site neutral.

In May, KE had testified before the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) to “add 1,282MW of renewable energy, including solar and wind projects, by 2030.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2024