id your autumn electricity bill shock you? Just when you thought that the air-conditioners and room fans were the culprits and so the pleasant-to-cold fall season would bring some relief from the staggering amounts you had been paying for electricity bills all summer round, you were proved wrong.

It doesn’t help to know that you aren’t the only one suffering from budget malfunction due to insane electricity bills. Peak-hour consumption coupled with fuel adjustments has emptied the pockets of consumers as they struggle to wrap their heads around the kind of bills they’re still receiving, despite use of much less electricity.

Shiraz, a resident of Defence, Lahore, says, “I couldn’t believe when I saw my electricity bill. It was absurd how the fuel adjustment cost should be higher than the electricity itself.”

The reasons for this are numerous: The depreciating rupee, an increase in power tariff, and a corresponding increase in fuel prices, have all given a gut punch to the common man’s home budget.

There might be a solution that is stable, sustainable and cost-effective in the long run: solar power.

It seems like a luxury that not everyone can afford, but from another perspective, it can be seen as an investment. At best, it is just a one-time shock.

Solar makes sense

Lahore is greeted by the sun all year round. The city is said to receive an average of 3,000 hours of sunlight in a year. That makes 124 days of ‘constant’ sunlight which further translates into eight hours of sunlight a day, every day of the year. With the end to the energy crisis nowhere in sight, it’s only reasonable for people to look for more reliable sources of electricity, and solar energy is just that.

Solar is a cheap, clean, modular and flexible energy source. Electricity prices have skyrocketed as the country is largely dependent on imported fuel to generate a major chunk of its electricity. Solar power has come a long way in establishing a market in Pakistan and, compared to a decade ago when the technology was making its way into the country, it’s less expensive.

It’s still not an affordable option for everyone, as it comes with a hefty investment. A sceptical population that doesn’t open its pockets easily to investment is a major reason for solar to be still underutilised in the country.

Net metering

Cost savings lie in net metering, which is a billing mechanism that credits solar energy system owners for the electricity they add to the grid. For example, if you own a bungalow in DHA, and have solar panels installed on your rooftop, during the peak hours of the day, when most of the residents are away it generate more electricity than is consumed.

There’s a rub. In order to avoid power outages completely, you need to store the excess electricity generated during the day in batteries that are among the costlier items in the initial installation process. Those looking for a cheaper solution could just shift to grid-provided electricity at night.

The surplus units can be sold to the power supply company — in this case, the LESCO — during the day, which will save you credits that you can use for electricity at night time.

Ali Zia, a resident of PAF Falcon Complex, is very happy with the solar panels installed in his house. “Earlier, our electricity bills would touch Rs 50,000 per month. Then we installed a 5kw system and our bill came down to Rs 10,000-15,000 in peak summer. After a couple of months we increased our capacity to 17kw; now we get credit units worth Rs 5,000-15,000,” he tells TNS. “We are now actually making a profit, because of the net metering system.

According to Zia, an average solar system is priced at Rs 150,000 to Rs 200,000 per kilo watts. “In the long term this will pay off. It has eased our monthly burden and we are no longer bothered about high electricity bills and outages.”

There’s a rub. In order to avoid power outages completely, you need to store the excess electricity generated during the day in batteries that are among the costlier items in the initial installation process. Those looking for a cheaper solution could just shift to grid-provided electricity at night. This can still save them money as they sell electricity during the day and consume it during the night.

A hybrid solution

A hybrid solution is another option. This can reduce electricity bills without having to empty your pockets.

There are numerous solar companies to choose from. Solar is the latest trend, especially at places where people have enough rooftop coverage to be able to utilise it. Regardless, one can always think of cutting down on their electricity bills and maybe shift partially to solar.

Such small investments can ease the burden of peak-hour consumption on a household. If we look at the problem on a holistic scale, it can ease the burden on the national grid too. Currently, the share of solar in our power generation mix stands at an abysmal 0.5 percent. The federal government has already green-lighted an additional 10,000 MW of electricity for the national grid through solar power generation. Besides, the 17 percent general sales tax which was imposed on solar panels has been removed.

The investors are hoping for a policy that further incentivises grid-connected solar generation to help ease the peak load. The proliferation of grid-connected, roof-top solar establishments has the potential to become the backbone of the national grid.

The writer is based in Lahore and currently works at COLABS

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