NTPC may invite fresh bids for Rs 25k cr bulk tender

State-run NTPC may invite fresh bids against its Rs 25,000 crore bulk tender for procurement of supercritical power equipment for five projects, as one of the bidders may face disqualification on technical grounds.According to Power Ministry officials, disqualification of the bidder may result in a situation where there is not sufficient competition to permit the award of contract for one of the tender items.They said it is for NTPC to decide whether to re-tender the entire contract or re-invite bids only for those items where one of the bidders was disqualified.

However, NTPC chairman and managing director RS Sharma said, "The matter (re-tendering) is under consideration.Unless it is put up to a competent authority, I cannot comment on the issue."

NTPC's board is meeting at the end of this month and the issue may be discussed there, sources said.

NTPC had invited separate international competitive bids for sourcing boiler and steam turbine generator sets, i.e. 11 sets of boiler and turbine generators units in October last year.

BHEL and a consortium of Larsen &Toubro and Mitsubishi submitted bids for the boiler package and five companies -- BHEL, L&T-Mitsubishi, Bharat Forge-Alstom, Toshiba-JSW, Power Machines (Russia) -- submitted bids for the turbine generator package.

"Though these companies have formed their joint ventures on paper, hardly anything can be seen on the ground," a source, requesting anonymity, said.One of the prerequisites to bid for the bulk tender was for the company or JVs to have an indigenous manufacturing base.

Each boiler and turbine generator set is capable of generating 660 MW of power. Out of the 11 units solicited under the tender, nine units are for NTPC and the remaining two units will be used by Damodar Valley Corporation, which had clubbed its requirement in the NTPC tender.

Supercritical units are environment-friendly and improve the efficiency of thermal power projects. The equipment will be used in five power projects in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Jharkhand.These units are expected to come up in the XIIth Five Year Plan Period (2012-17).