Pakistan

The Pakistani authorities have once again tendered a bid to develop 600 MW of solar capacity in Punjab, Pakistan. The government is now telling prospective developers that they have until Oct. 30 to submit proposals.

Pakistan is in the process of designing a new auction plan to deploy 9 GW of solar power. The initiative will involve the installation of 6 GW of large-scale solar projects, 2 GW of medium-scale solar projects, and 1 GW of rooftop solar capacity.

The Pakistani authorities say that prospective developers must submit bids for a new 600 MW solar tender by May 8.

Amid fierce public opposition, Pakistan’s National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has decided not to proceed with proposed amendments to its 2015 net-metering regulations. Nepra originally planned to reduce the tariff paid to net-metered households from PKR 19.32 ($0.072)/kWh to PKR 9/kWh.

Pakistan’s National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has published its annual report for the 2021-22 financial year. The regulator granted nine licenses for solar projects, totaling 44.74 MW of installed capacity, and 7,032 net-metering licenses for a total of 243.43 MW.

Pakistan’s National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has concluded a public consultation on a proposed amendment to 2015 regulations for distributed generation and net metering. It will raise the price paid by net-metered households to inject excess electricity into the grid from PKR 19.32 ($0.089)/kWh to PKR 9/kWh.

Pakistan’s Punjab region is planning to build solar plants on top of canals across several locations. Experts are now being sought to conduct a feasibility study and identify potential locations.

Solar and wind are expected to account for a growing share of the electricity mix in the years ahead, rising from around 3% at present to 23% by 2030. Over the following two decades after that, however, this share will likely remain unchanged, as the national regulator expects the country to deploy more coal-fired generation capacity.

The postal operator, which is present in 12,000 locations nationwide, wants PV facilities to power its operations. Bidders have until February 20 to deliver on a call for expressions of interest and pre-qualify for the tender.

Italian oil and gas company Eni has completed a solar park at its Bhit Gas Field. The plant, which took six months to build, is integrated into the field’s generation system.