Pakistan’s Power Division has directed distribution companies to clear a backlog of 1,355 pending solar net-metering applications within 10 days, following concerns over prolonged delays in processing already-approved connections.

According to official instructions, the cases were submitted before February 8 but remain unprocessed in several regions, with some applications pending for over six months. The Power Information Technology Company (PITC) reported that delays had increased amid regulatory changes affecting the country’s solar prosumer framework.

The Power Division has set a firm deadline of June 1 for the installation and energisation of all remaining net-metering connections. It also instructed relevant companies to resolve technical issues such as transformer tagging errors, which have resulted in incorrect load assessments and rejection of some applications and billing cases.

The matter came to light after data from PITC and the 118 consumer complaint portal highlighted a significant accumulation of unresolved solar applications. Officials also noted that complaint resolution times for electricity outages were exceeding regulatory benchmarks set by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA).

In response, the Power Division has ordered disciplinary action against underperforming field officers, including superintending engineers, executive engineers, and sub-divisional officers. It also warned that officials responsible for unnecessary delays in net-metering installations or complaint handling may face performance-related penalties.

The backlog emerged during a period of policy transition in Pakistan’s solar sector, as regulators moved from a net-metering system toward a net-billing framework. Under revised regulations effective February 8, NEPRA introduced changes to how rooftop solar exports are accounted for, while assuring that existing applicants submitted before the cutoff would be processed under the previous system without discrimination.