Bahrain is seeking to award contracts for the construction and operation of 7.5 MWac of grid-tied solar capacity in 2 tenders and expects bids for power plants to be set up on building rooftops and car parks of authority buildings.

In 1 of the auctions, the country's Sustainable Energy Authority (SEA) expects proposals for a solar PV plant of at least 5 MWac that will be installed on building rooftops and car parks of the Ministry of Education.

In the 2nd auction, bidders will compete to build, own and operate a solar PV power plant of over 2.5 MWac on building rooftops and car parks of the Ministry of Labour and Social Development. The proposals will be opened by December end.

The winners in the 2 tenders will be awarded power purchase agreements (PPAs) for a period of 20 years.

Bahrain relies on a mix of solar, wind and waste-to-energy technologies to reach a renewable energy target of 5%, or 250 MW, by year 2025. The kingdom is set to exceed the target as it has already implemented projects of 237 MW, achieving 95% of the targeted capacity four years ahead of schedule, SEA's president Abdul Hussain bin Ali Mirza said earlier in December.