Pakistan’s energy minister says net metering billing system for solar power unsustainable

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Updated 28 January 2025
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Pakistan’s energy minister says net metering billing system for solar power unsustainable

Pakistan’s energy minister says net metering billing system for solar power unsustainable
  • Net metering policy allows users to generate solar power and export excess to grid for credit or monetary compensation
  • Energy ministry says burden of $366 million was transferred to electricity consumers in 2024 due to net metering policy

ISLAMABAD: Energy Minister Sardar Awais Leghari on Tuesday called for revising Pakistan’s existing solar net metering system, saying that it was becoming unfeasible for the government to continue buying power at the same cost from distributors and pay subsidies to solar power consumers. 

Solar net metering is a policy that allows homeowners and businesses to generate their electricity using solar panels and export any excess to the national grid. In Pakistan, it is a billing system through which consumers receive credits or monetary compensation for the surplus electricity they produce and send to the grid. 

The government approved the net-metering policy in 2017 to encourage solar energy use and reduce power shortages. Under this policy, the government says it pays Rs21 per unit for the net-metered electricity, resulting in a subsidy of Rs1.90 per unit. Pakistan’s energy ministry said in April 2024 that the subsidy burden is being shared by the government, domestic and industrial electricity consumers for other affluent consumers who are capable of generating power from solar panels. 

“Solar net metering has to change,” Leghari said while addressing a conference in Islamabad. “It is impossible for us to sustain the same cost of buying power from distributors the way we are.”

The minister said the government was unaware of the “serious implications” that are caused by on-grid non-net metered power on the country’s power grid. On-grid non-net metered power refers to a solar power system that is connected to the grid but does not have a net metering agreement with the utility company.

“I am not ready as the minister of power to keep any surplus power to myself just because the people and industry are not ready to pay the entire cost,” he said. “Whatever they can afford to pay, whatever the marginal cost is, I’ll be more than happy to share that advantage for economic growth.”

The minister also announced the government’s plan to auction surplus electricity in the country, saying that it will be provided to industries. This initiative aims to stimulate industrial growth and create new employment opportunities across Pakistan. 

Meanwhile, the energy ministry’s spokesperson stated that a government report from last year said that a burden of Rs103 billion ($366 million) was transferred to electricity consumers in 2024 due to the existing net metering policy. 

“The burden is expected to rise to Rs503 billion ($1 billion) in the next 10 years,” the spokesperson said, quoting the report. 

He added that only 0.6 percent of total electricity consumers in Pakistan were net metering users out of which 80 percent belonged to affluent areas of major cities while the remaining 99.4 percent of electricity consumers bear the burden of the net metering costs.

Separately, Leghari met US Charge D Affairs Natalie Baker to discuss the reforms undertaken by the power sector to slash electricity costs.

He said the government was following a non-interference policy based on transparency and international standards in a bid to attract investors regarding privitization of DISCOs, the energy ministry said. 

Appreciating the efforts undertaken by the energy ministry, Baker assured Leghari of working together to explore new vistas of cooperation in the energy sector, it added. 

Pakistan has ideal climatic conditions for solar power generation, with most parts of the country receiving over nine hours of sunlight daily. According to the World Bank, utilizing just 0.071 percent of the country’s land area for solar photovoltaic (solar PV) power generation could meet Pakistan’s electricity demand.

The South Asian nation, home to 241 million people, aims to transition to 60 percent renewable energy by 2030 and reduce projected emissions by 50 percent. However, despite a recent surge in solar power adoption, it remains far behind in achieving this goal.


Pakistan press club sues critic for defamation under controversial cybercrime law

Pakistan press club sues critic for defamation under controversial cybercrime law
Updated 11 sec ago
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Pakistan press club sues critic for defamation under controversial cybercrime law

Pakistan press club sues critic for defamation under controversial cybercrime law
  • President of the Mardan Press Club says the accused had attacked members with ‘highly inappropriate language’
  • Journalist leaders say case should have been registered under other laws, not Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act

KARACHI: A journalists’ club in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has filed a case against a critic over alleged defamation under the controversial Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), which Pakistani journalist bodies have challenged in courts.
The Mardan Press Club (MPC) alleged that Zahid Khan, who manages a Facebook page under his name and claims to be associated with ‘Daily Nida-e-Watan’ and ‘Piyam-e-Khyber’ newspapers, had been running a “defamatory and negative propaganda campaign” against the club and its members for several years. The First Information Report (FIR), registered against Khan under sections 506 and 500 of the Pakistan Penal Code as well as the PECA law, says the accused had been using “highly inappropriate language repeatedly” against MPC members.
The Pakistan Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Act, 2025, enacted on January 29, includes provisions making the dissemination of “fake or false” information a criminal offense punishable by up to three years in prison without clearly defining “fake or false” news. Journalists and digital rights experts say they were excluded from consultations on the bill, which prevented genuine public scrutiny of the new law, and have challenged it in courts.
The PECA amendments aim to create four new regulatory bodies to regulate online content and broaden the definition of online harm. The regulatory bodies will be authorized to block and remove content based on ambiguous criteria that do not meet the standards of proportionality and necessity required under international human rights law, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International rights groups have said.
“Zahid had applied for the club’s membership, but the governing body rejected his application, deeming him unqualified for the membership,” Muhammad Riaz Khan Mayar, the MPC president, told Arab News.
“Following this, he approached the civil court and then the high court, but both forums dismissed his petition. After that, he started launching personal attacks against the press club and its members on social media, using highly inappropriate language repeatedly.”
Mayar said his press club shared concerns of Pakistani journalist bodies about the PECA law.
“The press club cannot engage in fights but has the right to seek legal recourse against persistent defamation and personal attacks,” he argued, saying that PECA was used only because it is currently in effect.
While journalist leaders supported legal action against the accused for alleged defamation, they criticized the invoking of PECA by the complainants.
AH Khanzada, secretary-general of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), said the FIR should have been registered against relevant sections of the Pakistan Penal Code, and not the PECA law.
“The journalists of the country firmly stand against the PECA law which we strongly believe has been enacted and later amendments were made to target freedom of speech and freedom of press,” Khanzada said.
“We will continue our struggle against the law, which we have no doubt is meant to suppress our voice. As we stand with Mardan Press Club against those attacking it, we believe that registering FIR under the PECA law is totally wrong.”
He urged the press club management to take back the complaint and register it, if at all necessary, under other laws.
Fazil Jamili, president of the Karachi Press Club, echoed the concerns.
“We, the journalists, strongly oppose the PECA law and no case, against anyone, should be registered under it,” Jamili told Arab News. “We also believe that the press club had every right to adopt legal course against a person who had been making personal attacks on its office bearers and members, but it should be registered under other defamation laws instead of PECA.”


Pakistan PM uses World Governments Summit to call for independent state of Palestine

Pakistan PM uses World Governments Summit to call for independent state of Palestine
Updated 11 min 40 sec ago
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Pakistan PM uses World Governments Summit to call for independent state of Palestine

Pakistan PM uses World Governments Summit to call for independent state of Palestine
  • Gaza war has been paused since January 19 under ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas
  • Palestinian territory, encompassing Gaza Strip and West Bank, has been occupied by Israel since 1967

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday used the pulpit at the World Governments Summit in Dubai to call for the creation of an independent state of Palestine, saying it was the only path toward a “durable and just peace.”
The latest Gaza war, which began after an Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, has been paused since Jan. 19 under the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that was brokered by Qatar and Egypt with support from the United States.
More than 48,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war, the Gaza health ministry says, and nearly all of Gaza’s 2.3 million population has been internally displaced by the conflict, which has caused a hunger crisis.
Some 1,200 people were killed in the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on southern Israeli communities and about 250 were taken to Gaza as hostages, Israeli tallies show.
“This gathering could not have come at a more opportune time as the region begins to recover from the tumultuous aftershocks of the tragic conflict in Gaza, which has claimed [lives of] over 50,000 innocent Palestinians,” Sharif said as he addressed the WSG.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif addresses the audience at the plenary hall during the World Governments Summit in Dubai on February 11, 2025. (AFP)

“It is now our hope that the genocidal operation will be followed by a lasting peace. However, Pakistan believes that durable and just peace is only possible through a two-state solution in accordance with the relevant UN resolutions, that is the creation of an independent state of Palestine, with pre-1967 boundaries and Al-Quds as its capital.”
Palestinian territory – encompassing the Gaza Strip and West Bank, including East Jerusalem – has been occupied by Israel since 1967.
Pakistan does not recognize Israel and has consistently called for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters.”


In unprecedented development, Pakistan chief justice meets visiting IMF team

In unprecedented development, Pakistan chief justice meets visiting IMF team
Updated 11 February 2025
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In unprecedented development, Pakistan chief justice meets visiting IMF team

In unprecedented development, Pakistan chief justice meets visiting IMF team
  • Discusses judicial reforms, accountability, recent restructuring of commission that recommends judges to superior courts
  • Finance ministry said on Sunday IMF mission would visit Pakistan to conduct Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Assessment

KARACHI: In a rare development on Tuesday, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation visiting Pakistan met the country’s chief justice for discussions on judicial reforms, accountability and the recent controversial restructuring of a commission that recommends judges for Pakistan’s superior courts.
The finance ministry said on Sunday a three-member IMF mission would visit Pakistan in the coming week to conduct a Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Assessment under the country’s 2024 Extended Fund Facility program for a $7 billion loan. The ministry said the mission’s report would recommend actions for addressing corruption vulnerabilities and strengthening integrity and governance, with the findings helping to shape structural reforms.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court said in a press release the IMF team led by Joel Turkewitz had met with Chief Justice Yahya Afridi.
The statement quoted the CJ as saying he would be “quite guarded” in his comments to the IMF team and the judiciary was “not used to direct interaction with such missions,” but it was taking place on the request of the finance division.
“He then highlighted key Constitutional developments with respect to the Judicial Commission of Pakistan and reforms, including senior-level judicial appointments, judicial accountability, and the restructuring of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP). He elaborated on the merits of integrating the judiciary and the parliamentary committee to ensure a more transparent and efficient judicial selection process,” the SC statement said.
Discussions during the meeting also centered on judicial accountability and mechanisms for addressing complaints against judges.
“The Chief Justice emphasized the importance of a robust and fair accountability process to uphold the integrity and independence of the judiciary,” the statement said.
The finance ministry statement on Sunday had said the focus of the visiting mission would be to “examine the severity of corruption vulnerabilities across six core state functions.”
“These include fiscal governance, central bank governance and operations, financial sector oversight, market regulation, rule of law, and Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism,” it read.
The finance ministry said the IMF had long provided advice and technical assistance to foster good governance such as promoting public sector transparency and accountability.
“Traditionally the IMF’s main focus has been on encouraging countries to correct macroeconomic imbalances, reduce inflation, and undertake key trade, exchange, and other market reforms needed to improve efficiency and support sustained economic growth,” the finance ministry said on Feb. 9.
“While these remain its main focus in all its member countries, however the IMF has found that a much broader range of institutional reforms is needed if countries are to establish and maintain private sector confidence and thereby lay the basis for sustained growth.”
The IMF identified that promoting good governance in all its aspects, including ensuring the rule of law, improving the efficiency and accountability of the public sector, and tackling corruption, “are essential elements of a framework within which economies can prosper,” the ministry said, welcoming the IMF’s technical support and saying the assessment would aid efforts to promote transparency and institutional capacity.
The South Asian country, currently bolstered by a $7 billion IMF facility granted in September, is navigating an economic recovery.
The IMF is set to review Pakistan’s progress by March, with the government and central bank expressing confidence about meeting its targets.


Pakistan urges global support for its $100 billion energy transition at World Governments Summit in UAE

Pakistan urges global support for its $100 billion energy transition at World Governments Summit in UAE
Updated 14 min 11 sec ago
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Pakistan urges global support for its $100 billion energy transition at World Governments Summit in UAE

Pakistan urges global support for its $100 billion energy transition at World Governments Summit in UAE
  • The summit brought together a large number of heads of governments, global policymakers, and leading private sector figures
  • Pakistan was committed to achieving 60 percent clean energy mix and 30 percent electric vehicle transition by 2030, PM Shehbaz Sharif says

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday called for global support to meet Pakistan’s $100 billion energy transition needs as he addressed participants at the World Governments Summit (WGS) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The summit, being held in Dubai on Feb. 11-13 under the theme ‘Shaping Future Governments’, brings together a large number of heads of state/government, global policymakers, and leading private sector figures to discuss the future of governance, innovation and international cooperation.
Addressing the summit on Tuesday, the Pakistani prime minister urging stronger climate financing, technology sharing from governments, private investment, and multilateral cooperation for sustainable growth of developing nations.
“The global shift to a green economy requires a shared responsibility,” he said. “Pakistan’s energy transition alone demands $100 billion in investment and I call upon governments to strengthen climate financing and technology sharing, private investors to explore Pakistan’s green energy and infrastructure opportunities, multilateral institutions to support emerging economies like Pakistan in achieving sustainable growth.”
Sharif emphasized that while Pakistan was fully committed to mobilizing domestic resources and policy reforms, international partnerships and financial support remained critical to achieving this goal.
The South Asian country offers one of the most dynamic investment landscapes in Asia, with 70 percent of its dynamic, young and tech-savvy population under the age of 30, according to the prime minister. Pakistan is simplifying business regulations, enhancing legal protections and streamlining investment approvals to make it a leading destination for global capital.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif speaks during the World Governments Summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on February 11, 2025. (AP)

“To drive investment in key sectors, the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) has been established focusing on renewable energy and resilient infrastructure, technology and digital economy, minerals and industrial development and agricultural and food security,” he said.
Pakistan established the SIFC, a civil-military body, in June 2023 to attract foreign investment by eliminating bureaucratic hurdles and provide a one-window operation to foreign businesses.
Sharif said his country stands at a “defining moment of economic transformation” as inflation dropped to 2.4 percent in January, the lowest in nine years, with the interest rate capped at 12 percent, a major stimulus for private sector credit.
He said the Udaan Pakistan national economic transformation plan, which focuses on exports, e-Pakistan, environment and climate change, energy and infrastructure, equity and empowerment, has energy security and sustainability at the core of its agenda, not just as an economic necessity but as a national priority.
“Pakistan is committed to achieving a 60 percent clean energy mix by 2030 and transitioning 30 percent of all vehicles to electric mobility and we are rapidly scaling up solar, wind, hydro power and nuclear energy,” he added.
PAKISTANI, UAE LEADERS SEEK TO DEEPEN ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP
Sharif earlier met with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, with the Pakistan PM’s office saying both leaders discussed ways to deepen cooperation between Pakistan and the UAE and explored opportunities to enhance mutual interests.
“The talks focused on economic, trade, and development fields, alongside other areas that align with both nations’ visions for sustainable economic growth and prosperity,” Sharif’s office said said in a statement.

The two figures also exchanged views on a number of regional and international issues of mutual interest, with a focus on recent developments in the Middle East.
“They emphasized the need for intensified international efforts for a comprehensive and lasting peace in Palestine based on the two-state solution to maintain regional security, stability, and peace,” Sharif’s office said.
The Pakistani premier also met with UAE Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, who established the WGS in 2013.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif meets United Arab Emirates (UAE) Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, on the sidelines of the World Governments Summit 2025, in Dubai on February 11, 2025. (PMO)

“The Prime Minister lauded this transformative and timely initiative, providing a platform to world leaders, policy makers and experts, where they could gather under one roof to hold global discourse on the future of governance and better future,” Sharif’s office said in a statement.
The prime minister highlighted Pakistan’s pro-investment policies aimed at facilitating Emirati investors in key sectors such as energy, infrastructure, mining and IT.
“He invited Emirati businesses to explore investment opportunities in Pakistan,” the statement read.


Pakistan says IMF ‘on board’ over $7 billion bailout targets

Pakistan says IMF ‘on board’ over $7 billion bailout targets
Updated 11 February 2025
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Pakistan says IMF ‘on board’ over $7 billion bailout targets

Pakistan says IMF ‘on board’ over $7 billion bailout targets
  • The statement comes days before the arrival of an IMF team for the first review of the facility
  • IMF bailouts are critical for Pakistan which narrowly avoided a sovereign default in June 2023

KARACHI: Pakistan has taken the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on board over its targets under a $7 billion loan program it secured in September, a finance ministry official said on Tuesday, days before the arrival of an IMF mission in the South Asian nation for the program’s first review.
A successful review, expected later this month or in early March, would see the Washington-based lender release around $1 billion tranche to cash-strapped Pakistan, which seeks to boost its foreign exchange reserves to achieve the IMF’s threshold of three months import cover.
IMF bailouts are critical for Pakistan which narrowly avoided a sovereign default in June 2023 by clinching a last-gasp, $3 billion IMF loan and is currently navigating a tricky path to economic recovery.
“We are on track,” Khurram Schehzad, an adviser at the Pakistani finance ministry, told Arab News. “The IMF is on board on the targets and benchmarks that we have achieved as well as only a few we are chasing. We are fully prepared to go into the review process.”
The statement is expected to allay investor concerns about Pakistan meeting the IMF’s conditions to reform its economy by cutting on energy subsidies, broadening the tax net to agriculture, real estate and retail sectors, and privatizing loss-making, state-owned enterprises like the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
“We are working on the taxation side by bringing in the under-taxed and non-taxed sectors into the net by broadening, deepening and widening it,” Schehzad said.
Provincial governments in Pakistan’s Sindh, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces have recently enacted laws to impose taxes on farm incomes, fulfilling one of the IMF’s requirements.
Since averting an imminent default on its external debt in 2023, Pakistan is now keeping its current account in check primarily through containing imports. The country’s exports rose 10% to $19.6 billion in the last seven months till January, while it is keeping tabs on imports that increased by 7% to $33 billion, according to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
“Our balance of payment position is going to be manageable this year,” said Schehzad, who believes population growth and climate change are the two biggest challenges facing Pakistan’s economy.
The country achieved a current account surplus of $1.2 billion from July 2024 till December 2024 and is expecting to receive a record $35 billion worker remittances by June 2025. It expects IT exports to increase to $4 billion this year.
As jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party carries out countrywide protests to demand the return of its “stolen” mandate in the last general election, PM Shehbaz Sharif’s government is trying to shore up the fragile economy, which Schehzad said is expected to expand in the range of 3% to 3.5% this financial year ending in June.
Pakistan’s central bank has slashed the interest rate by a cumulative 1,000 basis points to 12% since June to spur economic growth, thanks to the easing inflation that rose 2.41% last month, the lowest in more than nine years.
“We are keeping an eye on the prices of all essential items that should be reflective of the prevailing inflation numbers, so to close the gap between numbers and on-ground prices,” the finance adviser said.
The pace of price hike is expected to ease further in the months ahead, which will create more room for the central bank to decrease the rate of bank borrowing.
“We are giving priority to long-term sustainability of the economy over short term reliefs,” Schehzad said.
The Pakistani government is striving to turn the hard-earned economic stability with fiscal and external consolidation into a growth that is export-led and driven by productive and efficient investments primarily by the private sector, according to the finance adviser.
The government is working to break the so-called boom-and-bust cycle Pakistan’s economy has been “suffering from in the past many years now” and targets 6% growth and beyond by 2029, he added.