For months, the solar conversation in Pakistan has been stuck in slogans: “Net metering is dead.” “Solar no longer makes sense.” That framing is lazy—and wrong. We for one lobbied in The News International against it and got results: Solar Setback What’s actually happening is more consequential, more technical, and far more political.

What changed — plain and simple

Until now, rooftop solar users operated under net metering: export 1 unit → import 1 unit → full retail value. The government has now pivoted toward net billing: export 1 unit → get paid less than retail for it. That single change rewrites the economics of rooftop solar.

Why the state stepped in

Pakistan’s grid wasn’t designed for millions of mini power plants dumping electricity at noon and demanding it back at night. The problems were piling up:

• Power companies buying expensive solar units while selling cheap baseload power
• Revenue gaps widening inside DISCOs
• Grid instability from uncontrolled daytime exports
• Capacity payments to IPPs staying fixed while demand patterns broke

In response, the Ministry of Energy (Power Division) has now formally constituted a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) Committee, involving NTDC, PPMC, ISMO, and DISCO representation. That notification matters more than most people realize.

Read between the lines: this is not anti-solar

The government isn’t trying to stop solar adoption. It’s trying to change where the value sits. The signal is clear:

• Solar without storage = grid headache
• Solar with storage = grid asset

By lowering export buyback rates and simultaneously pushing a national BESS roadmap, the state is nudging consumers toward self-consumption, not grid arbitrage.

Who feels the pain?

Let’s be honest.

• New residential investors see longer payback periods
• Export-heavy systems lose their golden ROI
• Middle-income households who financed systems expecting policy stability feel blindsided

Policy credibility has taken a hit. That’s real.

Who actually benefits?

Quietly, three groups stand to gain:

• Battery-backed solar users who can peak-shave instead of exporting
• Commercial & industrial consumers optimizing demand charges
• The grid itself, which gets flexibility without building new thermal plants

This is a structural shift—from selling electrons to managing load.

The uncomfortable truth

Net metering was never meant to be permanent. It was an incentive—used aggressively, maybe too aggressively. Pakistan is now doing what many grids eventually do: claw back value and push responsibility downstream. Was it handled clumsily? Yes. Is the direction inevitable? Also yes.

What should consumers do now?

• Design solar for daytime self-use, not exports
• Treat batteries as an insurance asset, not a luxury
• Be cautious—but not frozen—about new installs
• Demand clarity, timelines, and grandfathering protections

Solar in Pakistan isn’t dying. It’s growing up—and adulthood is always messier than the honeymoon. Bottom line: This isn’t a war on solar. It’s a recalibration of who carries the cost of the grid—and who gets paid for stabilizing it. And like all recalibrations in Pakistan, the politics may be louder than the physics—but the physics will win in the end.