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Bahrain’s Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) is moving forward with its Bilaj Al Jazayer Independent Power Plant (BAJ Solar IPP), with contract award expected in the second quarter of 2026, according to a source aware of the details
EWA issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the development of the 100-megawatt (MW) capacity solar photovoltaic (PV) plant to be delivered under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) on a Build-Own-Operate (BOO) basis on 16 October 2025.
Bid submissions are due on 28 December 2025 with bid opening scheduled for 29 December 2025, according to the tender documents.
“The contract award is expected in March 2026 with commercial operation scheduled for the third quarter of 2027,” a source aware of the details said.
An EWA public notice said BAJ Solar IPP will be procured through a single-stage RFP process. The selected bidder will be responsible for the full lifecycle of the project for 25 years, including development, financing, construction, operation, maintenance, decommissioning, and site restoration. The scope includes generation facilities and associated infrastructure such as access and internal roads.
All bids will first undergo an Initial Capability Assessment against Minimum Eligibility Requirements (MERs) covering financial capacity, experience in securing limited-recourse financing, and track record in developing large-scale solar PV projects.
“Only bidders that satisfy the MERs will proceed to detailed technical and financial evaluation in line with the criteria set out in the RFP,” the notice said.
The criteria include:
The bidder (if a single entity) must demonstrate Tangible Net Worth of at least $50,000,000. If the bidder is a group, each group member must demonstrate Tangible Net Worth in proportion of their equity stake of $50,000,000. The managing member must demonstrate a Tangible Net Worth of at least $20,000,000.
The Bidder (or the Managing Member for a Bidder that is a Bidding Group) must demonstrate that it has proven experience in securing limited-recourse financing of at least $150 million cumulatively across three or more infrastructure projects in the last 10 years. The Bidder, or Managing Member of the Bidder Group, must hold an equity ownership of at least 15 percent equity ownership in the reference project.
The project forms a central part of Bahrain’s push to generate 20 percent of its power from renewable sources by 2035.
(Reporting by Deva Palanisamy; Editing by Anoop Menon)
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