Good News for Pakistani Solar Users waiting for Net Metering approvals
Why this matters: local context for readers following news across Pakistan and the region.
ISLAMABAD – Relief for solar users waiting for net metering approvals as Federal Minister for Energy (Power Division) Awais Leghari ordered fast-track clearance of long-pending cases across DISCOs. Thousands of applications stuck for months are now set to be processed on priority, bringing hope for quicker connections and faster adoption of solar energy. Minister issued strict instructions to all DISCOs to immediately speed up the processing and installation of net metering connections. Authorities have also decided to initiate disciplinary action against those DISCOs responsible for unnecessary delays and bottlenecks in the system. A shocking briefing revealed that as many as 1,355 net metering applications have been pending for a long time across different DISCOs, showing severe administrative backlogs and inefficiencies. Even more concerning, it was disclosed that transformers have still not been properly tagged with net metering consumers, creating a major technical and procedural gap in the system. Officials further warned that due to the absence of proper tagging, many legitimate net metering cases are being rejected outright, raising serious questions over the handling of applications. The briefing also confirmed that the complaint resolution time in several DISCOs is far beyond the duration mandated by NEPRA, indicating systemic non-compliance with regulatory timelines. Power Minister criticized the slow pace of implementation and directed all DISCOs to clear the entire backlog of pending net metering connections by June 1. It has been decided that underperforming DISCOs will face accountability, and senior operational staff including SEs (Superintending Engineers), XENs (Executive Engineers), and SDOs (Sub-Divisional Officers) will be taken to task for negligence and delays. Adding further pressure, authorities have warned that bonuses and performance incentives for officers and staff of poorly performing DISCOs will be immediately withheld if improvements