One thing the citizens of Pakistan may have been particularly frustrated with last week was the sun, which shone intensely wherever one went. The government, perhaps, would have taken it as another reason why solarization would be a highly successful prospect for the country.
It is well-known that Pakistan has a recurring balance of payments crisis and its foreign exchange reserves are critically low — $ 4.01 billion as of June 9, 2023, which is not enough to cover even a month’s imports.
As the country’s foreign exchange reserves depleted sharply last year, the government identified that energy generation-related expenses, for which Pakistan has to import fuel, were quite high. It, therefore, decided to launch the National Solar Energy Initiative, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announcing the government would launch solar projects to generate 10,000 megawatts of electricity.
While announcing the budget for fiscal year 2024 on June 9, 2023, Minister for Finance and Revenue Ishaq Dar revealed the decision to remove customs duties on the import of raw material of solar panels, inverters and batteries.
The government also allocated Rs 300 crore to convert 50,000 tube wells to solar energy.
Following the announcement, the solar industry must have collectively breathed a sigh of relief, for it has been plagued by numerous problems in the current fiscal year that will end on June 30.
The problems began back when the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government decided to impose a 17 percent general sales tax (GST) on the import of all solar equipment at the start of 2022. The content in this publication is expensive to produce. But unlike other journalistic outfits, business publications have to cover the very organizations that directly give them advertisements. Hence, this large source of revenue, which is the lifeblood of other media houses, is severely compromised on account of Profit’s no-compromise policy when it comes to our reporting. No wonder, Profit has lost multiple ad deals, worth tens of millions of rupees, due to stories that held big businesses to account. Hence, for our work to continue unfettered, it must be supported by discerning readers who know the value of quality business journalism, not just for the economy but for the society as a whole.To read the full article, subscribe and support independent business journalism in Pakistan
Solar power installations have seen remarkable growth, with an installed capacity of over 2,368 MW as of FY22, reflecting the rising popularity and potential of solar energy. In recent years, Pakistan has witnessed substantial investments in solar power projects, both domestic and foreign. The lack of infrastructure is one of the major challenges faced by the solar energy sector in Pakistan. This includes the absence of transmission lines, substations, and grid connections, which makes it difficult to transmit solar energy to the national grid
The Pakistan Solar Energy Market size is expected to grow from 1,300 megawatt in 2023 to 9,767.02 megawatt by 2028, at a CAGR of 49.68% during the forecast period (2023-2028).
Pakistan has tremendous potential to generate solar and wind power. According to the World Bank, utilizing just 0.071 percent of the country’s area for solar photovoltaic (solar PV) power generation would meet Pakistan’s current electricity demand.
great sir kindly write also on solar panels in pakistan like which company is providing and supplying the best and lowest prices of solar panels, because the summer will come after some months its important for buying.
and which solar panel have the best efficiency.
Write also About Solar Panels Price In Rawalpindi.