ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday took notice of the recent changes made by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) regarding solar consumers and directed the Power Division to file a review appeal against it.

The power regulator on Monday changed the terms of contracts for all existing and future net-metered solar consumers — known as prosumers — to contain rising solar energy penetration and protect an expensive and inefficient state-owned power network. The notification effectively terminated the existing net-metering regime and replaced it with net-billing for all.

A statement from the PM Office (PMO) issued today said the premier had taken “immediate notice” of the matter.

The development follows outcry from senators across the political spectrum, including the ruling ally, the PPP, and the opposition, the PTI, in opposition to the NEPRA move.

The PMO quoted the prime minister as directing the Power Division to immediately file a review appeal before Nepra “to ensure every possible safeguard of the existing consumer contracts”.

PM Shehbaz was of the view that the “burden of 466,000 users benefitting from solar should not be put on 37.6 million domestic consumers who were getting electricity directly from the national grid”.

“Power division should chalkout a comprehensive strategy in this regard,” he added.

The prime minister issued these directives while presiding over a high-level meeting on the new Nepra regulations.

The meeting was attended by Deputy PM Ishaq Dar, Power Minister Awais Leghari, Economic Affairs Minister Ahad Cheema, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kiyani and PM’s adviser Muhammad Ali.

Speaking in the Senate on Tuesday, Leghari had defended Nepra’s move, stating that it had been made to take the burden off consumers.

“Changing regulations according to the law and the Constitution is a regulator’s job,” he said, adding that he refused to step back from this.

“This is not policy; there should be clarity on that,” he maintained.

From net-metering to net-billing

Stakeholders and policy experts had warned that the proposed Prosumer Regulations 2025 risked dismantling a decade of citizen-led energy progress.

Under the new regulations, the existing registered prosumers will be shifted immediately to net-billing instead of net-metering, and their export units will be credited for one month only instead of the current three months.

All other existing terms will remain unchanged until the expiry of their seven-year contracts.

Net-billing means electricity generated by a prosumer’s distributed facility is purchased by a Disco, and a bill is raised on consumption at Rs37-55 per unit after credit for electricity supplied by the prosumer at the National Average Energy Purchase Price (NAEPP) of around Rs10 per unit.

Under the new regulations, prosumers will not be allowed to install solar systems for net-metering beyond their original sanctioned load, effectively reducing the capacity limit by 50 per cent.

New prosumers will be granted only five-year contracts, and their export units will be accepted at Rs11 per unit compared to Rs26 under the existing contracts. Consumers’ import units from distribution companies (Discos) will now be billed separately at Rs37-55 per unit, depending on the relevant slab, excluding taxes, surcharges and duties.

Surplus generation exported to Discos will be calculated separately — at Rs26 per unit for existing and around Rs10 per unit for future prosumers. The net difference will be billed to consumers, unlike the existing system of unit-for-unit exchange in import and export.

Both the government side and the regulator have blamed prosumers with higher-than-approved solar capacity and non-metered solar homeowners for grid challenges and higher capacity charges. However, the new regulations appear silent on both counts.

Nepra stated that the new prosumer regulations provide clearer procedures, stricter technical requirements and a shift in billing methodology, aiming to better integrate small-scale generation into the national grid while safeguarding system stability.