Federal Minister for Power, Sardar Owais Ahmed Khan Leghari, stated that the current government has no intention of imposing taxes on imported solar panels, aiming to promote the renewable energy sector. Despite proposals suggesting a tax, the Prime Minister rejected the idea, maintaining the government’s stance to support solar energy imports.
Leghari’s comments were shared via a video message on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), where he discussed the challenges facing the power sector and the government’s strategies to address them. He highlighted that many agricultural tube wells have transitioned to solar energy due to high electricity costs, with hopes that these consumers will return to the national grid as electricity prices decrease.
Leghari also noted that the government is purchasing expensive electricity from 125,000 net-metering consumers as an incentive to boost the solar energy sector. The issue of rising electricity rates has been a significant concern, with recent hikes raising domestic consumer prices to meet IMF conditions.
In response to rising costs, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently announced a Rs50-billion energy subsidy package for low-income households, though experts caution it may not be enough to prevent potential public unrest.
