Pakistan

Solar association chair argues urgent battery energy storage deployment is key to supporting continued PV boom in Pakistan. Residential solar CEO predicts surge in behind-the-meter storage demand if and when Pakistan’s generous net metering policy is wound down.

A research team assessing the social embeddedness of solar minigrids in rural Pakistan found the technology responds to energy poverty while fostering empowerment in communities, leading the team to conclude a minigrid can foster broader societal change while providing a technological solution.

Researchers have developed a maximum power point tracking algorithm based on the social hierarchy and hunting strategy of grey wolves. When tested under realistic shading conditions, the grey wolf optimizer achieved an average MPPT efficiency of 98.15%, significantly outperforming conventional MPPT methods.

With no utility-scale projects set to come online this year, the growth of Pakistan’s solar market is being driven by net-metering installations. There were over 4,000 new net-metering connections pending by the end of June, with regulatory bottlenecks contributing to a growing backlog.

An international research team has tested a hybrid control technique combining adapted perturb and observe (APO) with model-predictive control to address complex partial shading in solar arrays. The method, validated through simulation and physical experiments, reportedly outperforms existing approaches.

Researchers have combined the theory of planned behavior, the technology acceptance model, and diffusion of innovations theory to investigate rooftop solar adoption in China. From a 1,200-person survey, they found that subjective norms and social influence from peers and community had a surprisingly more substantial effect than personal attitudes or perceived ease of use.

Lucky Cement’s 22.7 MWh battery is the largest in Pakistan, and the project is now just months away, according to a company executive.

The Pakistan government has proposed an 18% general sales tax on imported solar panels in its budget for the new 2025-26 financial year. Pakistan Solar Association has warned the tax risks slowing solar adoption in the country.

Pakistan’s net-metered solar capacity has hit 5.3 GW, driven by surging rooftop installations and record solar imports from China.

Scientists in Qatar have outlined a new approach to optimize residential bifacial PV systems by combining south-facing and vertically mounted east-facing configurations. The novel methodology reportedly results in a 21.6% increase in a system’s net present value.