CAMBODIA’S Rural Electrification Fund plans to open bidding on its 12,000 solar panel systems as soon as next month, Executive Director Loeung Keosela said yesterday. The fund has hired an Australian consultant who is preparing the guidelines for the tender, marking the last step before bidding can begin, he said. Financed by loans from the World Bank, the REF plans to make a bulk purchase of solar panels, which will in turn be sold individually to rural households, in theory at a lower cost than usual.