The Israeli National Infrastructures Ministry has been working towards delivering 2,000 megawatts of renewable energy by the year 2020. Central to this promise has been a planned 250MW solar power station near Ashalim in the western Negev desert. The Israeli Government has officially called for tenders from energy companies with the understanding that the power plant will be Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT). This means that the winning bidder will build the power plant, operate it for the period of the licence and then transfer the full ownership back to the state once the licensing period is over.

The tenders committee is hoping to complete the entire tender process by the fourth quarter of 2008. Israeli Minister of National Infrastructures Benjamin Ben-Eliezer has gone to great pains to emphasise that the project development tender is open to foreign as well as local companies.

Size of the Project 
The Ashalim Solar Power Project will consist of 2 thermo-solar power stations, each with a capacity of between 80 and 125MW with a maximum installed capacity of 250MW. The estimated cost of the project has been published at $650 million. The tender also makes mention of a planned photovoltaic power plant with an approximate installed capacity of 15MW with provision to expand it by a further 15MW to bring it up to a possible 30MW PV power plant.

Tender Pre-Requisites
The tender is after companies who can meet the prerequisites of having experience in construction operation and maintenance of solar powered stations, as well as having the financial capability to complete the project. The tender invitation lists the following experience based prerequistes:

  • experience and capability to supply solar technology and the successful supply of such solar technology for at least one (1) power plant with a total production capacity of not less than 3 MW installed capacity, connected to a grid and operating consecutively for the last two(2) years.
  • operating and maintaining of at least one (1) currently operating solar thermal  power plant with a total production capacity of not less than 3 MW installed capacity, connected to a grid and operating for at least two (2) years.
  • served as the EPC Contractor in the design, construction and supply / purchase of at least one (1) conventional power plant with not less than 100 MW installed capacity that operated for at least one (1) year, during the last ten (10) years.
  • operating and maintaining, of at least one (1) conventional power plant with capacity of not less than 100 MW installed capacity, which operated for a consecutive three (3) year period, during the last six (6) years.

The successful company will also be required to demonstrate financial robustness with the tender document stipulating that:

  • The bidder should demonstrate that during 2005, 2006, and 2007, the aggregate annual weighted average of turnover of all its members together has been at least two hundred (200) Million US Dollars.
  • The bidder should demonstrate that the weighted annual average of each member’s cash flow from operating activities during 2005, 2006, and 2007, is not negative.
  • The bidder should demonstrate that each member has, for every one percent (1%) of its anticipated holdings in the bidder, an equity of seven hundred thousand (700,000) US Dollars.
  • Certain relaxation of the financial requirements shall be granted to such solar thermal technologies providers that meet certain criteria as set forth in the Pre-Qualification Documents.

Possible Players
I can throw in 3 companies who I think will be very keen to submit their tender application: Solel (Mojave Solar Park), Luz II (Ivanpah) and Abengoa (Solana Generating System).

The tender will remain open until July 1, 2008 at which time I would expect we shall know more about the technology that may be utilised as well as who will do the utilising.

The National Infrastructures Ministry tender document can be viewed online.