Up to 25 kW: NEPRA removes licence requirement for small solar users

The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) abolished on Tuesday the licensing requirement for solar consumers with systems of up to 25 kilowatts, offering relief to households and small businesses looking to adopt renewable energy.

The authority also announced it wouldn’t charge fee from the small solar users.

The development comes two days after the Power Division requested the NEPRA to abolish the application fee and eliminate the licence requirement for solar consumers with systems of 25 kilowatts or less. It asked the NEPRA to revert to the 2015 framework for solar systems of 25 kW and below.

Under the 2015 regulations, consumers with systems of 25 kW or below were exempt from licensing and fees, with applications directly handled by power distribution companies (DISCOs).

However, the NEPRA recently tightened net metering rules with new amendments, making it mandatory for a new consumer/prosumer to have concurrence from the authority irrespective the size of the facility. Further for submitting the application it was required to deposit a fee calculated at Rs 1000/kw.

Also read: solar sector urges govt to withdraw licence condition

This led to severe criticism from stakeholders, pushing the government to revert to the 2015 regulations.

“On the special instructions of Federal Minister for Power Sardar Awais Ahmed Khan Leghari, and upon the request of the Power Division, National Electric Power Regulatory Authority has abolished the requirement of a licence for solar consumers with a capacity of 25 kW or less. Thank you, NEPRA,” the Power Division said in a statement on Tuesday.

A notification by the NEPRA showed solar users above 25kW would be charged Rs1,000 per kW as one-time fee paid in favour of the NEPRA.

The notification shall be applicable and deemed to be effective from February 9, 2026, it read.

Pakistan imported over 50 gigawatt (GW) of solar panels at an estimated cost of almost $18 billion in the past five years, a volume equivalent to the country’s entire grid capacity, a study recently said.

As per the study, the boom in renewable energy has protected seven million households and many businesses in the country against energy price shocks and geopolitical risks.