ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s power distribution companies (Discos) have sought approval from the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) to impose fixed charges on solar net metering users, arguing that the rapid expansion of rooftop solar systems is undermining their financial stability.
At a public hearing on Tuesday, officials from Multan Electric Power Company (Mepco) and Gujranwala Electric Power Company (Gepco) said that growing adoption of solar energy was cutting into revenues and making it harder to recover transmission and distribution costs.
The proposal—backed by the Ministry of Energy—suggests levying fixed charges on electricity exported by net metering users to offset financial losses. It comes amid a drop in national grid demand and excess capacity in the gas and power sectors, as high electricity tariffs drive more households and industries toward solar energy.
A previous government plan to slash the solar buyback rate to Rs. 10 per unit faced intense public backlash and was eventually rejected by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
During Tuesday’s session, Nepra also reviewed multi-year tariff petitions for the 2025–26 to 2029–30 period. Regulators expressed concern over delays in payments to solar users and reprimanded Gepco for the unauthorized installation of advanced metering infrastructure.
While Mepco reported 100% recovery targets for FY 2024–25, it acknowledged some delays in collections. Meanwhile, the government recently launched a three-year incentive scheme offering reduced rates for incremental electricity use in an attempt to discourage the shift to solar and boost demand for grid-based power.
