"The Ministry of Electricity and Energy has responded to criticism over its controversial 1060-megawatt solar power tender, extending the bid deadline by a month to give bidders more time to prepare proposals. Announced on May 18, the potentially billion-dollar tender for 30 sites across the country on 20-year contracts originally set a June 18 deadline for bids. The tight deadline prompted an outcry from potential investors and warnings that the government would end up paying more for power, particularly as tender rules require bidders to show evidence of having secured land when they submit their proposals. Given COVID-19-related restrictions on domestic and international travel makes it almost impossible to visit any of the sites, the one-month window effectively ruled out companies or consortiums that did not already have land near the proposed sites. Support independent journalism in Myanmar. Sign up to be a Frontier member. The extension notice, published in the Global New Light of Myanmar on June 3, pushes back the deadline to July 17, giving investors two months in total to prepare a bid. It represents a surprising backtrack for the ministry and its Electric Power Generation Enterprise, which had previously indicated it was not considering an extension. In a clarification document shared on May 29 with companies that had purchased tender documents, it responded to numerous requests for an extension by saying: “At the moment, EPGE does not consider any extension of Bid Submission Date.” In a meeting with foreign business chambers on May 29, Minister for Investment and Foreign Economic Relations U Thaung Tun also seemed to endorse the tender, saying that the government “wanted to proceed with that quite fast” to expedite investment and stimulate the economy, which has been badly affected by COVID-19. The extension of the bid deadline is unlikely to mute the criticism, however..."