ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has reached a historic milestone in the use of solar energy and surpassing the national grid supply.
According to a report by the Policy Research Institute for Equitable Development, during the summer season, the country’s electricity generation from the national grid ranged between 28 and 30 gigawatts. In comparison, consumers utilized solar energy with a capacity of 33 gigawatts, surpassing the national grid supply.
The report further revealed that Pakistan has imported solar panels with a total capacity of 50 gigawatts, while the overall installed capacity of the national grid stands at approximately 46 gigawatts.
Among the provinces, Punjab leads in solar energy usage, followed by Sindh in second place, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in third, and Balochistan in fourth.
The report stated that the residential sector is the top user of solar energy with 16.66 gigawatts, followed by the industrial sector consuming 7.91 gigawatts, the agricultural sector using 5.04 gigawatts, and the commercial sector at 3.73 gigawatts.
It also highlighted that 77 percent of consumers now rely on their own solar power systems to meet their energy needs, while only 23 percent depend on electricity from the national grid.
