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NVVN Issues 500 MW/1000 MWh Standalone BESS Tender in Rajasthan Under VGF Scheme

NVVN has released a 500 MW/1000 MWh Standalone Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) tender in Rajasthan under the Viability Gap Funding (VGF) scheme, marking the 14th tender under the program. With this, the total VGF-backed BESS capacity has now reached 12.3 GWh.

Key Highlights of the Tender:

• Project Capacity: 500 MW/1000 MWh
• Business Model: Build-Own-Operate (BOO)
• PPA Tenure: 12 years
• Offtaker: RUVITL
• Minimum & Maximum Bid Capacity: 100 MWh to 500 MWh
• Land Allocation: 17,500 sq. mtr. per 125 MW/250 MWh, leased by RUVITL
• Location: 4 substations (220 kV and 400 kV)
• Grid Connectivity: STU network (?220 kV)
• Charging Responsibility: Buying entity
• Operating Cycles: 2 per day
• Availability Requirement: 95% (with LD at 2x capacity charges)
• Round-trip Efficiency (RtE): Minimum 85% monthly
• Performance Penalty:
  • RtE < 70>
  • RtE 70-85%: LD at APPC rate
  • RtE > 95%: Incentive of Rs0.50/unit for excess discharge
• Annual Degradation: 2.5% allowed
• Commissioning Timeline: 18 months + 6 months (early and part commissioning allowed)
• VGF Support: Rs27 lakh/MWh or 30% of CAPEX, whichever is lower, disbursed in five tranches
• Tariff Benchmark: Should not exceed Rs2.26 lakh/MW/month
• Bidder Selection: L1 + 2% range
• Financial Closure: Within 9 months from the effective date of the BESPA

BESS Tender Growth in 2025

With this tender, the total Standalone BESS tendered capacity has now hit 29.24 GWh across 32 tenders, with 18 GWh coming from just 9 tenders in 2025 alone.