Solar Boom in Pakistan

It is important to point out here that clean electricity produced from solar PV panels at inexpensive rates can boost economic growth, generate employment, bend the unemployment and poverty curves, reduce fossil fuels import bill and enhance export based revenue for Pakistan. To conclude, Pakistan has already matured solar PV technology and now is the time for the country to exponentially increase its installed solar PV capacity to 100 GWs. Altogether, solar PV technology can play an extremely crucial role in producing 100% electricity from renewable sources in Pakistan. Pakistan is a marvellous country with immense human potential and talent. However, electricity poverty is acting as the biggest hindrance in our socio-economic growth, and it is stopping us from utilizing our full available potential. Pakistan can be among the 15 most rapidly developing economies in 10 – 15 years from now, however, it must tackle electricity poverty problem head-on and do all it takes to ensure that every household in the country would have access to clean electricity 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. World Bank in its report “Pakistan Energy Survey (2024)” points out that only 3% of households in Pakistan have access to electricity for at least 16 hours a day while the remaining households in the country does not enjoy the same fate. Consequently, households spend roughly USD 2.3 billion each year on candles, kerosene lamps, gas lights, battery powered torches as substitute for conventional lighting in Pakistan. Imagine, if we would invest USD 2.3 billion each year on educating our children and ending poverty in Pakistan, instead of unconventional lighting methods. By doing so, we can gain a lot more return on our investment and we can create a sustainable Pakistan for all. Thus, electricity poverty is forcing us to lose human potential by exacerbating unemployment and making us spend precious financial resource on activities that might not yield much return. We desperately need to end electricity poverty in Pakistan, and we have what it takes to make this happen. Fortunately, a silent solar revolution is occurring at the grassroot level in Pakistan. As per the World Resource Institute, market forces are driving solar revolution in Pakistan and solar PV technology is expected to produce 20% of country’s total electricity by 2026. World Resource Institute further points out that China has matured solar PV panel manufacturing and has drastically reduced the PV panel prices by 50%. Simultaneously, Government of Pakistan removed duties and sales taxes on the import of solar PV Panels till mid-2025. Sharp decrease in production cost, removal of duties & sales taxes on solar PV panels and an exponential increase in grid electricity tariffs have triggered silent solar revolution in Pakistan and has made households and businesses to embrace solar PV technology like never before. As per World Economic Forum (WEF), Pakistan might have imported 22 GWs of solar PV panels by the end of 2024 and WEF had named Pakistan as the world’s sixth-largest solar market in November 2024. Pakistan has done a remarkable achievement in maturing solar PV technology, and we need to maintain the same pace for a few more years. We have what it takes to make this happen. According to Fraunhofer ISE, Germany’s installed solar PV capacity was 116.8 GWs at the end of 2025, making it the second largest source of public net electricity generation. Altogether, solar PV systems produced roughly 87 Terawatt hours (TWh) of clean electricity out of which 71 TWh was fed into public grid while remaining 16.9 TWh of renewable electricity was consumed by the households that generated renewable electricity. If Germany can have over 100 GWs of installed solar PV capacity, so can Pakistan. Deutsche Welle points out that Germany exported goods worth a whooping USD 1.77 trillion in 2025. Now is the time for Pakistan to maintain the solar boom so by 2035, Pakistan would also have 100 GWs of installed solar PV capacity. It is important to point out here that clean electricity produced from solar PV panels at inexpensive rates can boost economic growth, generate employment, bend the unemployment and poverty curves, reduce fossil fuels import bill and enhance export based revenue for Pakistan. The given idea is possible provided we implement right public policy actions in the right direction. It must be appreciated that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif is promoting the transition to renewable energy in Pakistan and want to reduce country’s reliance on imported fossil fuels. Pakistan has what it takes to produce 100% electricity from renewable energy sources and to decarbonize its economy. Pakistan has an excellent condition to produce clean electricity from solar PV technology. Do you know that World Bank points out that if Pakistan would install solar PV panels on just 0.071 percent of country’s areas, it could satisfy its existing electricity demand? We have the much needed potential, and solar PV technology is already matured in Pakistan. We just need to maintain the same momentum for few more years. We have what it takes to phase-out fossil fuels and nuclear power from energy landscape in Pakistan. The biggest hinderance for solar PV panels is that these would not work during night. However, if we have battery storage system in place that we can rely on to save solar electricity during day and to deploy it during night, we can overcome this hinderance. According to Sustainable Solutions Europe, Germany plans to exponentially increase its installed solar PV capacity to 215 GW by 2030 and aims to produce 80% of its electricity from windpower and solar PV technologies by 2030. Do you know that Germany had an installed battery storage capacity of roughly 19 GWh in 2024? With the help of battery storage, Germany can save solar PV based electricity during day to use it after sunset. If Germany can, so can Pakistan. We have what it takes to execute sustainable energy transition in Pakistan. According to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), Pakistan imported petroleum products worth over USD 6.6 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2024, followed by petroleum crude worth over USD 5.5 billion and natural gas liquified worth over USD 3.9 billion. Altogether Pakistan spent over USD 16 billion on the import of petroleum products. It is important to point out here that the import bill for petroleum products in FY 2024 was 0.6% less than FY 2023. This mean that Pakistan again spent almost over USD 16 billion on the import of petroleum products in FY 2023. If we would keep the petroleum products import bill static, we would spend a whooping USD 160 billion in a decade’s time on the import of fossil fuels. In 20 years, the import bill would skyrocket to over USD 320 billion. Can we afford this? I doubt. Now is the time for us to move our economy and society away from dependence on fossil fuels and nuclear power and towards renewable source of electricity generation. To conclude, Pakistan has already matured solar PV technology and now is the time for the country to exponentially increase its installed solar PV capacity to 100 GWs. Doing so, will certainly reduce Pakistan’s reliance on fossil fuels import and will also lower electricity cost in the country too. However, we must ensure that an increase in installed solar PV capacity must also be followed by an equal increase in battery storage capacity. Altogether, solar PV technology can play an extremely crucial role in producing 100% electricity from renewable sources in Pakistan. It will be a giant leap in reducing our existing trade deficit. Do you know that Pakistan experienced a trade deficit of over USD 24 billion in FY 2024? Likewise, the trade deficit was over USD 27 billion in FY 2023. We must bridge an existing gap between our imports and exports and do all it takes to ensure that the financial worth of exports from Pakistan would bypass imports with a large margin. We have what it takes to make this happen. Choice is ours and will always be.