Federal Minister for Energy Awais Leghari, while defending the net metering policy in the National Assembly, stated that the implementation of the proposed transition from net metering to net billing has been temporarily halted in order to review concerns and objections raised regarding the policy.
Speaking in the National Assembly, he said that around 466,000 consumers across the country are currently using the net metering system. He claimed that these consumers are earning up to 50 percent annual returns on their investment, as they generate electricity at approximately Rs 5 per unit and sell it to the national grid at Rs 27 per unit.
Leghari warned that if the government continues purchasing electricity at the same rate under net metering, electricity prices for the remaining 90 percent of grid consumers could increase by Rs 2 to Rs 2.5 per unit. According to him, under the net billing system, the profit margin of these 466,000 consumers would decrease to around 37 percent, while electricity for other consumers could become cheaper by Rs 1 to Rs 1.5 per unit. He emphasized that no group would suffer losses and rejected claims that the new regulations would negatively impact low-income consumers.
He further stated that the issue is being misrepresented on social media and noted that the regulator has amended net metering regulations five times in the past. He added that around 2,200 megawatts of installed solar capacity belongs to industrial users and that most solar systems have been installed in affluent areas, benefiting the elite.
The minister also claimed that the government reduced circular debt by Rs 780 billion within a year and cut Rs 100 billion from an independent power producer, adding that the current administration has taken unprecedented steps in the energy sector.
