ISLAMABAD: On the instructions of Federal Minister for Power Awais Leghari, the Power Division has officially approached the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) to scrap the application fee and waive the licensing requirement for solar energy users with systems of 25 kilowatts or less.
According to a statement issued by the Power Division on Sunday, the ministry had earlier informed NEPRA about the negative implications of the recent regulatory changes and urged that the framework be restored in line with the previous rules.
The development follows NEPRA’s clarification a day earlier that solar consumers not connected to the national grid do not need any licence from the regulator, and that no proposal is currently under review to change this position.
Under the 2015 regulatory framework, small-scale distributed generation systems of up to 25KW were exempt from licensing requirements. Applications for such installations were handled directly by distribution companies (DISCOs) without any processing fee, which acted as an incentive for household solar users.
However, under the newly introduced Prosumer Regulations, approval authority has been shifted to NEPRA, and application fees have been imposed even on smaller solar setups.
The Power Division further highlighted that the Private Power and Infrastructure Board (PPIB) had already raised concerns over this regulatory shift, requesting that the earlier approval mechanism for systems up to 25KW be maintained.
Stakeholders, including the Pakistan Solar Association, Primage (Pvt) Ltd, Pakistan Alternative Energy Association, and Siddiq Renewable Energy (Pvt) Ltd, also objected during public consultations. They argued that transferring approval authority away from DISCOs would create unnecessary administrative delays and hurdles.
Following the minister’s directive, the Power Division has now formally urged NEPRA to reinstate the previous system for small solar installations, warning that the current regulatory approach could slow down the country’s transition toward renewable energy.
Meanwhile, NEPRA officials reiterated that their regulatory framework does not apply to off-grid solar users, and is limited to net metering and net billing consumers connected to the national grid.
They added that under the revised regulations, net billing has been introduced for new consumers, and all grid-connected solar users, regardless of load, will now be required to obtain a licence from the authority.