Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Power Division, Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari, has announced that a new solar panel policy will be presented to the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) for approval soon.¹ This policy proposes that the national grid will purchase electricity from newly installed rooftop solar panels at a rate of Rs9.50 to Rs10 per unit.
The minister stated that new consumers who use solar panels will be able to recover their investment within 4 to 5 years. He also emphasized that the government will honor existing agreements for rooftop solar setups, purchasing electricity from them at Rs27 per unit.
Leghari expressed concerns that if the current situation persists, the growing number of net metering consumers will lead to an additional burden of over Rs600 billion annually on grid electricity consumers, resulting in an increase of Rs5 to Rs6 per unit.
The government is also negotiating a Rs1,200 billion loan from commercial banks to address the circular debt issue, which will be repaid over 5 to 6 years through the existing Rs2.83 per unit surcharge on electricity bills.
