Pakistan’s on-grid, net-metered solar capacity reached about 4.1 GW by December 2024, according to Afia Malik, senior research economist at the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE).
The capacity includes 283,000 consumers across domestic, commercial, industrial, and agricultural installations. Malik attributed the “significant surge” in capacity – up from just over 1.3 GW in June 2023 – to rising grid electricity prices and falling solar panel costs.
She told pv magazine that there has been a notable increase in off-grid solar, although no verified statistics are available. “Its volume can be judged from the fact that Pakistan imported 13 GW of solar modules from China in 2024,” she explained.
Total installed grid-level capacity in Pakistan is expected to reach 680 MW this year. Malik said that industries and commercial players are investing in solar to reduce costs and ensure reliable electricity supplies.
To date, between 3 GW and 4 GW of industrial solar capacity, including both in-house and captive solar, has been installed, with most installations being non-net-metered. Malik said that changes to the net-metering policy, scheduled for this month, may slightly slow growth in on-grid net-metering consumers, but distributed generation initiatives will continue.
“After the implementation of the amended net-metering policy (effectively, it will become net-billing), the decreasing costs of battery energy storage systems will play a critical role in driving solar PV demand,” Malik said. “Off-grid and hybrid energy solutions are also gaining traction in remote areas and will continue to do so in the future.”
Malik said Pakistan’s solar capacity will continue to grow substantially this year and next, driven by both on- and off-grid distributed generation initiatives, as well as provincial-level utility-scale projects. “On-grid, rooftop solar power is expected to reach 6 GW by 2026,” she said. “However, off-grid solar PV growth will be much faster.”
Among the notable large-scale renewable energy auctions in Pakistan last year was 150 MW of solar projects in Baluchistan, southwestern Pakistan. Malik said these projects, run by Pakistani utility company K-Electric, were awarded at a tariff of $0.039/kWh. K-Electric also ran a 220 MW solar and wind hybrid auction, which attracted the country’s lowest tariff bid of $0.0309/kWh from Canada’s JCM Power.
Malik also said that grid modernization and optimization are essential for integrating renewables into Pakistan’s energy system.
“Renewable energy in Pakistan has suffered from inconsistency in policy all along,” she added. “Consistent and effective policy formulation, including legislative enactments, financial incentives and a well-developed tariff structure promoting efficient energy use, can facilitate the widespread adoption of solar PV.”
Pakistan is aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by shifting about 60% of its energy mix to renewables, as outlined in its 2030 emission reduction plan.
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