Featured in Further upstream – 10-2024

Oversupply and demand in Pakistan

Solar panels flooded into Pakistan during the first half of 2024 and oversupply has wiped out module margins. Solar developers want greater liberalization of the nation’s electricity market but the government is concerned that moving too quickly could place more pressure on utilities already burdened by high capacity payments.

By

Matthew Lynas

04 Oct 2024

Businesses in Pakistan with capital have been quick to invest in solar, according to Wateen Energy Solutions. | Image: Wateen Energy Solutions

Pakistan is awash with solar panels. In August 2024, BloombergNEF revealed Pakistan had imported 13 GW of Chinese modules in the first six months of the year. One project developer told pv magazine that there is so much oversupply, modules are “lying on the road.” The country had around 3.5 GW of module demand in 2023, according …

Subscribe to get access to this content

Purchase a digital or print subscription to read this article in full. Choose the best subscription for you.