Pakistan Solar Power: News & Updates

[ghazi52]

Seen through this lens, the recent import slump looks less like a demand shock and more like a digestion phase. The market is working through earlier purchases. Growth in imports was never going to remain linear after such an aggressive stock build.

This interpretation also aligns with deployment data. The 2025 Nepra State of Industry Report shows no evidence of a solar slowdown. By the end of June 2025, Pakistan’s net metered solar capacity is estimated to have reached 6,485 MW. That represents an addition of nearly 4,000 MW in a single year, compared to about 1,200 MW added in FY24. The acceleration is unmistakable.

Crucially, these figures are not speculative. They are grounded in utility interconnection data and reflect systems that are actually operational. Unless something drastic has changed since June 2025, which it has not, net metered solar adoption remains robust. If anything, installations are still catching up with panels imported earlier.

 

[ghazi52]

There is, however, a nuance worth acknowledging. While near term deployment remains strong, growth rates may moderate going forward. Potential changes to net metering policy could lengthen payback periods and temper enthusiasm at the margin, particularly among smaller residential consumers. At the same time, with panel prices having largely bottomed out, the incentive to import aggressively in anticipation of further price declines has faded.

That combination naturally produces slower import growth without implying that solar adoption itself is stalling. Installed capacity can keep rising even as imports slow, simply because the system is drawing down existing stock.

Two weak months therefore do not, by themselves, signal the end of Pakistan’s solar momentum. They signal a market transitioning from accumulation to absorption. Imports were always a leading indicator, and like all leading indicators, they overshoot on the way up and undershoot on the way down.

Solar in Pakistan is not running out of sun. It is clearing its shelves.

 

[Fatman17]

Net metering fiasco

Either way, we had no choice but to pay. We were prisoners inside this grid.

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Net metering fiasco

 

[ghazi52]

Confiscated solar panels to be given to G-B​

FBR gives go-ahead; panel installation to help overcome outages

ZAFAR BHUTTA
February 12, 2026

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has given its consent for the distribution of confiscated solar panels in Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) to overcome electricity outages in the region.

G-B government has proposed a strategic distribution and transportation plan for 144,875 solar panels with a cumulative production capacity of 58.8 megawatts. The capacity is being divided into four primary streams.

During discussions in a recent meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs, Gilgit-Baltistan and States and Frontier Regions shared the background of the proposal. G-B chief secretary supported the plan, citing unprecedented load-shedding and environmental concerns as the justification.

FBR says as per provisions of the Customs Act, 1969, the confiscated goods become the property of the federal government, therefore, these can be distributed with approval of the government. The economic decision-making body decided that the consolidated transportation and handling cost of Rs240.1 million would be borne by the G-B government and it would be subsequently recovered from the beneficiaries.

The Ministry of Kashmir Affairs & Gilgit-Baltistan briefed the meeting that the G-B Water & Power Department had conveyed the prime minister’s directive for the distribution of confiscated solar panels by the FBR in G-B to mitigate electricity shortages. It requested the ministry to take up the matter with the FBR for handing over the solar panels lying at Karachi ports.

In that context, the ECC was informed, the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan held detailed deliberations with the G-B government, Finance Division, FBR and Customs Karachi on various aspects of the proposal, including the technical condition of the solar panels, transportation and logistics arrangements (including handling at Karachi ports and in G-B), mode of transportation, generation capacity, distribution mechanism, eligibility and distribution criteria, revenue implications and legal requirements under Customs laws.

Pursuant to the deliberations, a technical committee constituted by the G-B government conducted a comprehensive inspection of the solar panels and assessed their technical feasibility and transport modalities. Accordingly, G-B submitted a detailed solar distribution plan.

 

[Fatman17]

 

[AZ_HighCountry]

View attachment 178561

This is an excellent example why my plan is to eventually take the new house off the grid. Arizona Public Service is no better.

 

[ustaad]

View attachment 178561

Use batteries and do minimum buy/sell from the grid. Lithium batteries have become so cheap in Pakistan now

 

[White Privilege]

This is an excellent example why my plan is to eventually take the new house off the grid. Arizona Public Service is no better.

Use batteries and do minimum buy/sell from the grid. Lithium batteries have become so cheap in Pakistan now

yes batteries have become more compact too, so they take smaller space and provide the extra juice.Install a solar setup sufficient for the house as well as charging an EV, will save on further fuel costs.

 

[Fatman17]

A net-metering nightmare

'Attempting to repair 100pc of the sector by tightening rules on 1pc of the national electricity system defies logic and distracts from deeper structural distortions’.

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A net metering nightmare

 

[Fatman17]

Net-metering: how a policy turns into a fiasco

EDITORIAL: First things first, Federal Minister for Power Sardar Awais Khan Leghari has defended recent regulatory...

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How a policy turns into a fiasco

 

[Fatman17]

Solar without net metering

The global average price of solar PV modules was $0.72 per watt in 2015 and has since dropped to $0.24 in 2024.

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Solar without net metering

 

[Ali_Baba]

Can people disconnect from the grid in Pakistan and go off grid totally? Thought government tried to clamp down on on people who tried to do it.

 

[AZ_HighCountry]

Can people disconnect from the grid in Pakistan and go off grid totally? Thought government tried to clamp down on on people who tried to do it.

That's a good question. I am currently experiencing that where I plan to build. Per regulations, no off-grid setups are allowed if there is available commercial service. We are rethinking our approach to this.

The solar vendor commented that more and more customers are installing batteries as part of their installations. The outbuilding was designed to be solar-ready as well. It wouldn't take much to take it fully off the grid. Further, with an additional battery for the house proper, we can put a number of circuits on battery only. In theory, we would need only one circuit to be fed off the grid to be compliant.

 

[SiliconBit (silicon0000)]

Can people disconnect from the grid in Pakistan and go off grid totally? Thought government tried to clamp down on on people who tried to do it.

Yes but what's wrong in having a backup option.
The best option right now is to have a hybrid system with batteries.

 

[hydrabadi_arab]

Can people disconnect from the grid in Pakistan and go off grid totally? Thought government tried to clamp down on on people who tried to do it.

Yes but that doesn't make much sense. Grid is good backup just in case which is why people who can afford large batteries also go for hybrid system