Cabinet body abolishes generation licences requirement for net metering

ISLAMABAD: The Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE) has approved the proposal of the Power Division for eliminating the need for generation licences for small-scale RE-based systems (up to 25kW) for net metering.

The decision was taken during the CCoE meeting, held under the chairmanship of the Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar on Friday.

The planning minister said this measure will greatly facilitate consumers who wish to install small-scale solar systems for their homes and businesses and avail the facility of net metering.

The Power Division briefed the committee on the issues hampering the progress of the transmission line providing interconnection to the 660MW LEPCL Power Plant.

The committee was informed that all the technical issues have been examined and resolved. It noted there were no restraining orders from any legal/regulatory forum regarding the execution of the project.

The committee; therefore, directed that the project activities be carried out without any delay.

The Power Division also presented the circular debt report from July 2020 to June 2021. Due to the effective measures by the government the growth in the circular debt was being curtailed to a considerable amount.

During the last fiscal year 2020/21, Rs130 billion was added to the circular debt, registering a decline of Rs408 billion in the circular debt flow, compared with the previous year.

The committee appreciated the improvement in the recoveries and directed the Power Division to continue with its efforts for reduction in the circular debt.

During the meeting, the Petroleum Division presented the Draft Pakistan Oil Refinery Policy 2021 for CCoE approval. The proposed policy was discussed in detail. The Petroleum Division submitted that the purpose of the policy was to attract investment in new deep conversion refineries, as well as for the upgradation of the existing refineries. The members of the committee made a number of suggestions on the draft policy.

It was decided that the Petroleum Division would deliberate on the suggestions and re-submit the draft policy for CCoE consideration in its next meeting.

The Petroleum Division also presented an update to the committee on the $2.5 billion Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline project.

The update included details of head of shareholders agreement terms, funding arrangements, completion of technical studies and regulatory approvals.

The committee directed the Petroleum Division to ensure timely completion of various actions so that delays are avoided.

This PSGP pipeline will be laid from Karachi to Kasur and will be completed in a period of two-and-a-half to three years.

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