GAIL Invites Bids for 17 MW Floating Solar Plant in Uttar Pradesh

GAIL (India) Ltd., the country’s youngest Maharatna and a public sector natural gas company, has invited bids for the development of a 17.5 MW (AC) floating solar photovoltaic (PV) grid-connected power plant at its Pata complex in Auraiya district, Uttar Pradesh.

The project, floated on an open domestic competitive basis, marks another significant push by the PSU towards clean and renewable energy solutions within its operations.

The scope of the tender includes the complete design, engineering, procurement, supply, construction, erection, testing, and commissioning of the floating solar plant. The project is to be executed on an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) or Lump Sum Turnkey (LSTK) basis. Following successful commissioning and completion of the Operational Acceptance Test (OAT), the selected contractor will also be responsible for comprehensive operation and maintenance (O&M) of the plant for a period of three years. Additionally, a Comprehensive Annual Maintenance Contract (CAMC) for critical equipment is to be maintained for ten years from the date of OAT.

Bidding will take place via a two-bid e-tendering process, and all interested vendors must be Indian entities in compliance with the Government of India’s Make in India (MII) policy. While both Class-I and Class-II local suppliers are eligible to bid, purchase preference will be given exclusively to Class-I local suppliers, as defined in the policy guidelines. GAIL has clearly stated that bids must adhere strictly to the terms of the tender, with no room for deviations or exceptions.

The tender documents will be available for download from August 4 to August 19, 2025, through GAIL’s official tender portal, as well as on national e-procurement platforms including the CPP portal and GePNIC. Bidders must submit their bids online by 2:00 PM on August 19, 2025. The opening of unpriced bids is scheduled for August 20, 2025, and will be conducted via video conferencing on Microsoft Teams. A pre-bid meeting has also been arranged on August 8, also via Microsoft Teams, to clarify technical or commercial queries from prospective bidders. To help bidders familiarise themselves with the site conditions, a site visit has been scheduled for August 7 at GAIL’s Pata facility.

All bids must be submitted online through the designated e-tender portal, and certain original documents, including the Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) and, if applicable, the Line of Credit, required to be submitted in physical form within seven days of the bid due date. The EMD amount for this tender has been fixed at INR 77.52 lakh. GAIL has clarified that exemptions for EMD will not be applicable to Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) since the scope falls under a works contract.

Interested bidders may refer the document for further details.