Two BJP-ruled states issued strikingly similar massive power tenders that limit competition and favour #AdaniGroup. The Group has bagged one tender where suggestions by potential bidders to improve competition were ignored. Adani is frontrunner for the second tender too.
When @reporters_co ran a plagiarism check on the two tenders, we found a 83% match! Major differences were in names of the govt-owned firms and details like capacity needed.
Both tenders match Adani Group's upcoming ground plans & operations perfectly. A match made in heaven!
But before I get into the story, I have a request:
Investigations like this one take time, effort & a dedicated team to pull off. We @reporters_co believe in putting the spotlight on the powerful but we need your support to continue.
Please donate to us: https://www.reporters-collective.in/support-us
The story begins on 13 March 2024.
Maharashtra govt-owned power distributor, MSEDCL, issued a tender for purchasing electricity. The winner would have a 25-years-long tie up with the state govt to supply electricity.
But there was something incredibly unusual about this tender.
The tender required the producer to have the capability to supply power generated from both solar and thermal power plants together.
Earlier, a power producer was supposed to deliver electricity from a single source -- thermal OR renewable.
Now, the two sources were bundled.
Plus, the tender requirements were massive.
Maharashtra put out a bid for 6,600 MW, with 5,000 MW of that coming from solar and the rest from coal.
Guess how many players in India that level of power generating capacity in BOTH thermal and renewable sectors?
Barely a handful.
The biggest private player across both sectors is the Adani Group. Even in terms of power generation from either of the two sources, the Adani Group is a behemoth.
But when a combined capacity is considered, it's leaps and bounds ahead of the already limited competition.
Why is this such a big deal (no pun intended)?
The logic of issuing a tender for power supply is to discover the best possible price for electricity.
Basically, it's the state's duty to ensure there's maximum competition. Bidders will quote the cheapest possible price to win.
Cheap supply from a power producer would mean the state government-owned power distributor has to shell out less to purchase electricity.
Since this distributor supplies power to citizens, it would translate to reasonable electricity bills for Indians.
Ideally, a win-win.
Unfortunately, the state's decision to bundle the two sources whittled down competition in the first go.
Secondly, the state was asking for 5000 MW solar power. This is the world's largest solar capacity being awarded in one go so far.
Power sector experts estimate that for a company to deliver electricity from two sources at this scale it would have to invest at least Rs 28,000 crore.
This would be particularly bad news for the renewable energy sector which has seen smaller players mushrooming over the years.
Many potential bidders did complain about the tender's limitations to the govt-owned firm in a pre-bid meeting.
They specifically complained about how relaxing certain conditions would encourage more competition. However, the state authority mostly ignored all such suggestions.
The result: On 15 September 2024 Adani Group bagged the tender. And Maharashtra govt tied itself up with the Group for the next two decades and a half.
Think this is the whole story? I promise you things get even more interesting.
Adani Group has been setting up a new plant in UP and expanding two of its existing thermal plants in other states. All three new additions to its portfolio are of 1600 MW capacity -- exactly the amount of coal-fired power Maharashtra asked for.
It's also developing a solar park in Gujarat -- with enough capacity to feed meet Maharashtra's solar power criteria.
Maharashtra's tender allowed bidders to set up their plant in any part of India, fitting perfectly with Adani's future plans.
That was Maharashtra's case. Now lets shift focus to Rajasthan.
On 28 March 2024, Adani Group applied for a green nod to expand its existing Rajasthan-based Kawai Power Plant. It wants to add 3200 MW capacity.
In May 2024, Rajasthan issued a bundled tender just like Maharashtra. Guess how much thermal power they wanted? 3200 MW.
That's not the only coincidence. Rajasthan's tender specifically wanted the bidder to set up their thermal and solar capacities within the state -- advantage Adani since the Group is expanding the exact thermal capacity required within Rajasthan.
Rajasthan's tender also required companies to bid for a whopping 8,000 MW solar capacity. All of this had to come from a greenfield source within Rajasthan.
Adani Group, incidentally, is developing a 10,000 MW solar park in Rajasthan as part of an MoU with the state gov't.
The Group is a frontrunner for this tender as well although is yet to be awarded.
According to experts, this tender would entail investments worth Rs 52,000 crore.
At a recent investors call, the Adani Group named both these tenders as part of a positive trend. "We have started to take proactive steps for capacity expansion in view of this positive outlook and our long-term goals," it said.
Power sector watchers, meanwhile, maintain that bundling thermal and renewable energy is bad news. They say it's particularly bad for the renewable sector now that state govt's have decided to put "all their eggs in one basket" with long term contracts.
You can read the story here: https://www.reporters-collective.in/trc/two-power-tenders-by-bjp-ruled-states-favour-adani-group
Once again, we were able to do this only because of our readers' generous support. If you think our work is valuable, please donate to @reporters_co
https: www.reporters-collective.in/support-us
