Govt denies solar licensing claims

Power Division rejects reports of mandatory Nepra licence for net metering users

ISLAMABAD:

The Ministry of Power Division declared misleading the reports claiming the federal government made it mandatory for solar consumers to get a licence from the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra).

The reports stated that amendments related to solar systems made it obligatory for all consumers installing solar setups to obtain a licence from Nepra. The reports suggested the federal government imposed this requirement for all users opting for net metering.

On Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Power Division rejected these claims and clarified that regulations for obtaining licences related to solar net metering already exist and fall strictly under Nepra's jurisdiction as the regulator. "The matter of licensing is linked to the regulator, and distribution companies (DISCOs) are responsible for implementing these regulations," he said. The spokesperson said attributing such licensing requirements to directives from the federal government was "completely incorrect."

He noted that no official stance had been sought from the Power Division or the federal government before publishing the reports, which caused confusion among people.

The government in February abolished exchange of electricity units in solar net metering in a blow to consumers desiring to shift to renewables. It also reduced the contract period from seven to five years in an apparent bid to shift the burden of IPPs capacity payments to solar consumers now.

DISCOs will charge their rate for electricity which may be up to Rs50 per unit and will receive electricity from consumers at day at possible rate of Rs11 per unit.