The Power Division will submit a revised plan to the federal cabinet within two weeks, proposing to extend the solar net metering payback period from 1.5 years to 2–3 years. This move aims to reduce unjustified returns on rooftop solar and tackle the increasing surplus power on the national grid.Power Minister Awais Leghari stated on Thursday that the new policy won’t lower electricity tariffs but will help prevent further hikes in the future. He emphasized that net metering consumers won’t face penalties, but the current returns from solar energy are unsustainable. If left unchanged, these returns could ultimately lead to higher bills, even for those using solar power.
He confirmed that a summary has been submitted to the cabinet to finalize the wheeling charge rules, which will govern the fees for transmitting electricity through the grid.
The minister also revealed that the government is in discussions with the IMF to provide 5,000–6,000MW of surplus electricity at a marginal cost to high-demand industries like data centers and crypto mining operations.
In a separate update, Leghari mentioned that the federal government has officially informed the provinces that power distribution companies (Discos) will no longer collect electricity duty on their behalf. So far, only one province has responded. Once the others reply, the issue will be brought to the cabinet for a final decision.
The minister also noted a decrease in losses from poor billing and technical inefficiencies at Discos, with losses dropping from Rs. 591 billion in FY24 to Rs. 399 billion in FY25.