IndianOil extends hydrogen bid deadline again
Despite three bid extensions, bias allegations continue to cloud IndianOil's re-issued tender for a 10,000 t/y green hydrogen facility at its 15m t/y Panipat refinery.
On June 19 (2024), a day after the last deadline, IndianOil said the new deadline is July 9 (2024). IndianOil's previous deadline was May 7 (2024), and before that, it was April 22 (2024).
An IndianOil source says the latest extension was done to "attract wider participation." However, an industry source doubts anyone will respond.
"This tender has many difficult terms," he claims. "The previous (scrapped) tender had those terms upfront; in this tender, IndianOil has masked them."
He accuses IndianOil of trying to ensure that only GH4 India, its JV with L&T, and Gurgaon-based renewable energy company ReNew can qualify. In the previous tender, IndianOil said GH4 India could match any bidder's lowest bid.
Nobody except GH4 bid by the November 29 (2023) deadline, compelling IndianOil to scrap the tender on February 21 (2024). Some likely bidders, organised under the Indian Green Hydrogen Producers Association, petitioned the Delhi High Court, accusing IndianOil of preferring GH4.
Our source cites the technical qualification criteria, which say that a likely bidder should have set up a refinery, petrochemical or fertiliser facility of minimum 500,000 t/y capacity with a hydrogen handling facility or a hydrogen generation unit of 5000 t/y in any sector or a minimum 150-MW power station or a water electrolysis hydrogen unit with minimum 5-MW capacity. This should have been done during the past twelve years on a Build Own Operate (BOO) or Build Own Operate Transfer (BOOT) basis, and the plant must have been in operation for at least one year.
Alternatively, the likely bidder should have successfully executed and completed an EPC, EPCC or LSTK Contract with single-point responsibility involving project management, detailed engineering, procurement, construction, pre-commissioning and commissioning/ commissioning assistance for any of the facilities mentioned above within the past 12 years; and have one year's operation experience within the past 12 years of such facilities. "Only refineries have such experience," claims our source.
IndianOil did not respond to a request for comment.