Comment by Riaz Haq on June 17, 2025 at 10:03am

Pakistan's solar surge lifts it into rarefied 25% club

https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/pakistans-solar-surge-l...

As solar farms were the fifth-largest supply source for electricity just two years ago, solar's pre-eminence so far this marks a sharp swing towards renewables within the country's utility network.
In addition, the country is committed to much more growth in renewable energy generation capacity through the rest of this decade.
Pakistan is targeting 60% of electricity supplies to come from renewable sources by 2030, according to the International Trade Administration.
Through the first four months of 2025, renewable energy sources generated 28% of the country's electricity, so energy planners are aiming for a more than doubling in that share by the end of the decade.
With solar modules representing the quickest and cheapest means to meet those goals, further rapid build-out of the country's solar farm system looks likely, which will cement Pakistan's status as a global solar superpower.

Comment by Riaz Haq on August 24, 2025 at 8:26pm

Doug Lewin
@douglewinenergy
Something remarkable just happened in Pakistan.
In only 8 months, citizens built the equivalent of half the country’s national electric grid, without waiting for government or utilities.

How?
☀️ Cheap solar panels
☀️ TikTok tutorials showing how to install them
☀️ Farmers leading the way, swapping diesel pumps for solar

The results:
✅ Diesel sales dropped 35% in one year
✅ Families slashed costs and gained energy independence
✅ National demand on the grid actually declined because of so much distributed generation

This isn’t just about Pakistan. It’s a glimpse of how fast the world can shift when technology gets cheap enough and people take energy into their own hands.

These are the kinds of numbers that change the world.

🎧 Full Energy Capital Podcast episode with Bill McKibben here: https://tinyurl.com/mwmackr2

https://x.com/douglewinenergy/status/1958271947743301729

Comment by Riaz Haq on August 24, 2025 at 8:33pm

Pakistan's solar boom started to take off in 2023 when the price of solar panels from China dropped by more than 40%, as China ramped up its exports. Pakistani importers saw the potential to make a profit and bought them up en masse, selling them across the country. The solar transition further sped up in 2024, as the price of Chinese solar panels dropped even more, flooding the market with technology that many Pakistanis couldn't previously afford.

https://www.npr.org/sections/goats-and-soda/2025/08/21/g-s1-82369/s...

Adnan Shams, an electrician in Islamabad, says he has experienced the boom firsthand as more people call on him for solar installation. Earlier this summer, he attended a solar training course at National Skills University Islamabad, where the instructor taught students how to install panels. "[Solar] is beneficial in the long run, which is why the work is increasing," he says.



The proliferation of cheaper and more reliable batteries, used to store solar energy and also imported from China, now looks set to advance solar adoption as customers look for additional ways to reduce their bills and ensure a steady electricity supply.

Solar adoption reveals cracks in Pakistan's power system
But the millions of new solar users — like Zia and his neighbors — are having an impact on the financing of Pakistan's power sector.

That's because of reforms that date back to the 1990s. Pakistan was then struggling to produce enough electricity for its growing population. So the country set up long-term contracts to pay independent companies to produce electricity, regardless of how much is used.

These days, people are using less power from the Pakistani grid to avoid high electricity bills, says Rabia Babar, data manager at Renewables First. "The electricity cost in the country has increased so people are in conservation mode. They use less electricity to save [on] their electricity bills," she says.

As more Pakistanis add solar, demand for electricity from the grid has gone down, even though many still rely on the grid, especially at night.

As a result of this lessening demand and the government's continued obligation to independent power producers, "the same number of payments needs to be made by a lesser number of consumers," says Pakistan's energy minister, Awais Leghari.

He says the government is troubleshooting how to bring more industrial customers onto the grid to offset residential customers who are switching over to solar, while planning targeted subsidies for low-income users. "Our challenge is to get the demand to go up," he says.

Pakistan's capacity to generate electricity has also increased, with some residential and industrial solar producers selling the energy they make back to the grid by using net metering.

The Pakistani government has already taken several steps to regulate the residential solar industry, including lowering the rate it pays for electricity that household solar setups produce.

Comment by Riaz Haq on September 12, 2025 at 8:52pm

JinkoSolar attends 2nd China-Pakistan B2B investment summit, signing 2.3GW MoU - PV Tech

https://www.pv-tech.org/industry-updates/jinkosolar-attends-2nd-chi...


JinkoSolar, formally invited by the Outbound Investment Committee of the China-Asia Economic Development Association, joined the second China-Pakistan B2B Investment Summit convened by the Embassy of Pakistan. The summit, themed “Green Transformation and Digital Innovation,” brought together cabinet-level officials to frame the policy architecture for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) 2.0.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal and Energy Secretary Aftab Ahmad reaffirmed Pakistan’s pledge of maximum policy facilitation and security coverage for Chinese investors in renewable-energy and digital infrastructure.

On the sidelines of the event, Jinko signed MoUs totalling 2.3GW with leading Pakistani energy groups for its Tiger Neo modules and integrated storage systems, covering module supply, BESS deployment and utility-scale PV plant development. The deals target optimization of Pakistan’s energy mix and its 30 % renewable goal by 2030.

Daniel Liu, Indo-Pacific GM, Bright Wang, Jinko ESS GM for APAC and Shehan, Pakistan Country Head, executed the agreements. Liu commented: “Pakistan anchors our South Asia strategy. After 4.4 GW delivered in 2024 and a 28% market share, we will deploy Tiger Neo 3.0 to cut LCOE and accelerate Pakistan’s green transition.”

Comment by Riaz Haq on November 18, 2025 at 10:50am

South Asia Index
@SouthAsiaIndex
🚨 Pakistan becomes fastest growing solar energy nation — now ranking at number 4 in annual solar capacity.

▪️Pakistan added 17 GW solar power in a single year, much ahead of Japan, Germany, France and Brazil.

https://x.com/SouthAsiaIndex/status/1990795227180028360?s=20

-------------------

Pakistan’s rooftop solar output doubles as net metering expands, data shows

https://www.arabnews.com/node/2622248/pakistan

Net metering generation has surged as households and businesses add rooftop solar
Growth reflects consumer shift away from rising grid tariffs and unreliable supply
KARACHI: Electricity fed back into Pakistan’s power grid by rooftop solar users has more than doubled over the past year, according to new sector data reviewed by Arab News on Tuesday, as households and businesses increasingly turn to solar panels to reduce bills and avoid frequent power cuts.

Net metering allows consumers with solar panels to sell excess electricity back to the national grid, offsetting their monthly utility charges. When their panels produce more power than they use, the surplus flows into the grid. When production falls short, they draw electricity back from the utility. The system is designed to encourage small-scale renewable generation and reduce pressure on the national power network.

New figures from the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA), compiled by AHL Research, show that net metering units (excluding Karachi) rose from around 80 gigawatt-hour (GWh) per month in late 2024 to an average of about 174 GWh per month in mid-2025, with output peaking above 300 GWh in April during high summer sunlight. Net metering’s share of Pakistan’s total electricity generation also climbed, rising from about 0.6 percent to roughly 2–3 percent at peak periods.

The surge comes as Pakistan faces rising electricity tariffs, driven in part by fuel costs and capacity payments, and recurring grid instability. In major cities, rooftop solar adoption has accelerated among middle-income households, factories, retailers and small office buildings seeking to manage costs and avoid outages.

Analysts say the growth in rooftop solar is now material enough to affect the daytime load profile on the national grid, particularly during summer afternoons.

The expansion has also revived debate over the future of Pakistan’s Net Metering Regulations. Power distribution companies argue that increasing solar feed-in reduces their ability to recover fixed network costs, while consumer and industry groups warn that cutting net metering incentives could slow renewable adoption and push more users toward off-grid and battery-based solutions.

Pakistan’s experience mirrors trends in India, Bangladesh, Kenya, South Africa and Brazil, where high electricity prices and falling solar panel costs have driven rapid domestic and commercial rooftop generation. Some countries have adjusted tariff structures to balance grid stability with the need to encourage renewable energy.

Government agencies in Pakistan are now evaluating options to integrate higher levels of decentralized solar into the grid, including distribution network upgrades, time-of-day pricing and reforms to capacity charging models.

Comment by Riaz Haq on Thursday

Arif Habib Limited
@ArifHabibLtd
- Net metering's share in total generation rose by 112 bps YoY in Oct’25, reflecting increased solar adoption and lower grid dependence.
- Overall power generation down 3.7% YoY in Oct’25. NEPRA expects power demand to grow by 2.8% YoY in FY25.
- On MoM basis, net metering units increased by 43.3%.- Net metering's share in total generation rose by 112 bps YoY in Oct’25, reflecting increased solar adoption and lower grid dependence.
- Overall power generation down 3.7% YoY in Oct’25. NEPRA expects power demand to grow by 2.8% YoY in FY25.
- On MoM basis, net metering units increased by 43.3%.

https://x.com/ArifHabibLtd/status/1999074511019471347?s=20

Comment by Riaz Haq on Saturday

Pakistan plans large battery storage to ‘stabilise grid’ - Business -


https://www.dawn.com/news/1959871

Move aims to manage renewable intermittency, reduce frequency fluctuations, minister says
• Clean energy share rises to 46pc, surpassing 2025 capacity target

ISLAMABAD: The government is wor­king on large, utility-scale Battery Ene­rgy Storage Systems (BESS) to ensure stability of the national grid, which is currently facing challenges such as frequency fluctuations caused by the induction of intermittent renewable energy sources faster than planned targets.

“The government … is pursuing the development of large-scale battery energy storage systems through private-sector investments to address the intermittency of variable renewable energy, optimise grid demand management, and enhance overall system stability,” Power Minister Sardar Awais Leghari told the National Assembly in a written statement on Friday.

In response to a series of questions from various MNAs, the minister also confir­med that the government was gradually moving away from Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) as part of its policy to reduce reliance on imported fuels amid higher capacity contracts, increasing induction of indi­genous renewables, and stagnant demand.



Clean energy share

The minister said the clean energy share in the country had reached 46 per cent by September 2025 against the government’s 40pc capacity target for 2025.

He added that the government had set ambitious targets under its various power policies to increase the share of on-grid renewable energy capacity to 40pc by 2025 and 60pc by 2030.

Currently, 60 private-sector renewable energy projects with a cumulative capacity of 4,753MW are operational, including 680MW of solar, 1,937MW of run-of-river hydropower, 1,845MW of wind, and 291MW of bagasse cogeneration.

Alongside 9,619MW of public-sector hydropower and 100MW of solar in K-Electric’s system, renewables account for more than 37pc of the generation mix.

“Net-metering-based solar photovoltaic [PV] has further added 6,390MW as of September 2025, raising the clean energy share to approximately 46pc, thereby surpassing the government’s 40pc renewable energy capacity target for 2025,” the minister said.

In parallel, the minister said the government had finalised an initial quantum of 800MW for the Competitive Trading Bilateral Contract Market framework to provide market access to renewable ene­rgy producers and enable large consumers to enter into direct supply contracts with producers of their choice, subject to a wheeling charge of about Rs13 per unit.

Mr Leghari emphasised that the availability of reliable, efficient, eco-friendly, and affordable electricity was crucial for sustainable economic growth. “There­fore, the government is prioritising the effective use of renewable and indigenous energy sources through its national policies aimed at diversifying the energy mix by promoting clean and renewable sources such as wind, solar, hydropower, and bagasse,” he added.

LNG reliance

Discussing LNG diversion, the minister reported that dependence on imported fuel plants had comparatively reduced in recent years, and priority was being given to the utilisation of local energy resources, including Thar coal, solar, wind, bagasse, and hydropower, to minimise reliance on imported fuels.

He conceded that dependence on imported LNG had comparatively dec­reased in recent years. “This policy shift is primarily aimed at promoting ind­igenous and renewable energy resources and ensuring least-cost dispatch in the overall generation mix,” he added.

He continued that the government was actively promoting the adoption of solar energy technology at the consumer level across residential, commercial, and industrial sectors.
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