Islamabad: The Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet has approved amendments to net-metering regulations to reduce the financial burden on grid consumers.
According to Radio Pakistan, the ECC, which convened in Islamabad with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb presiding, made this decision in response to a significant increase in the number of solar net-metering consumers. The approved changes include a revision of the buyback rate from the National Average Power Purchase Price to 10 rupees per unit. Additionally, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority has been granted the authority to periodically revise this buyback rate, ensuring the framework remains adaptable to evolving market conditions.
It has been clarified that the revised framework will not apply to existing net-metered consumers with a valid license, concurrence, or agreement under the NEPRA Distributed Generation and Net Metering Regulations, 2015. Such agreements will remain effective until the expiration of the license or agreement, whichever occurs first. This ensures that the rights and obligations of these consumers, including agreed-upon rates, will continue under the existing terms.
Furthermore, the ECC approved an update to the settlement mechanism. Under this new structure, imported and exported units will be treated separately for billing purposes. Exported units will be purchased at the revised buyback rate of 10 rupees per unit, while imported units will be billed at the applicable peak and off-peak rates, inclusive of taxes and surcharges, during the monthly billing cycle.
The ECC was informed that the number of solar net-metering consumers surged to 283,000 by December 2024 from 226,440 in October 2024. The total installed capacity also increased from 321 megawatts in 2021 to 4,124 megawatts by December 2024, highlighting the rapid expansion of the net-metering sector. However, this increase in solar net-metering consumers has contributed to a rising cost of electricity for grid consumers, challenging the government’s efforts to reduce power tariffs.
In addition, the ECC has allowed M/s Agven Private Limited to export up to 10,000 tons of Potassium Sulphate Fertilizer annually, or fifty percent of the actual production, whichever is lower, from Gwadar Port, until December 31 this year.
Moreover, the ECC approved technical supplementary grants worth over one billion rupees for various departments and ministries for the current fiscal year. The committee approved 250 million rupees to support ICT-based educational initiatives, including smart classrooms, procurement of Chrome books, technology parks, and high-impact training centers. An additional 220 million rupees was allocated to enhance SME development, 36.099 million rupees for the procurement of spare parts for helicopter maintenance by Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, 15.4 million for helicopter maintenance by Frontier Corps Balochistan, North, and 670 million rupees for the Sustainable Development Goals Achievement Programme.