They really did it. Slapped an 18% tax on solar imports in Pakistan—like a wrecking ball swinging through the already fragile hopes of a sustainable future. This isn’t just a policy change; it’s a brutal punch to the gut of every ordinary Pakistani who dared to dream of escaping brutal load-shedding and sky-high utility bills by turning to the sun.
You know what's crazy? Just last month, my cousin Bilal in Faisalabad finally installed solar panels after saving for two whole years. Two years of skipping takeout, putting off family trips, and even selling his motorbike. He told me it felt like he’d finally punched through the darkness—literally. Now, with the new 18% import tax, his setup would’ve cost him another hundred thousand rupees, easy. That’s a couple of semesters of college or a down payment on a car. And for what? So some bureaucrat can hit a revenue target?
Let’s get one thing straight: this isn’t just about “adjusting tariffs” or “regulating the market.” That’s bureaucratic fluff. This is sabotaging the one lifeline people have when the national grid is failing like an old donkey cart on a mountain road. With the energy crisis chewing up livelihoods across the country, solar energy was the one beacon of self-reliance. And now? Now they’ve taxed the damn sun.
The timing couldn’t be worse. Pakistan is facing record-breaking heatwaves, suffocating power outages, and a rising cost of living that’s squeezing the middle class dry. So when you slap on an 18% tax on solar equipment—which we mostly import because we don’t have a local manufacturing base—it doesn’t just “discourage” solar. It kills it. Who’s going to invest in renewable energy now when the upfront cost just shot through the roof?
Oh, and let’s not forget what this means for businesses. Small- and medium-sized enterprises that were just starting to find their footing by cutting costs with solar are now staring down the barrel of increased overhead. Imagine a textile unit in Sialkot running partially on solar, managing to survive load-shedding while still making export deadlines. That tax just kneecapped them. It’s the kind of policy that makes investors flinch, not flock.
And the narrative we’re being fed? That the government needs revenue. That this is temporary. That local production will magically fill the gap. Please. We’ve been hearing that for years. Local production is a fantasy until someone actually invests in it—and no one’s doing that while policy changes every quarter. Meanwhile, the average Pakistani is paying the price for shortsighted decisions made in air-conditioned offices.
There’s a sinister irony here. While the world races toward renewables, Pakistan just hit the brakes. When the country should be handing out incentives to go solar—like tax rebates or subsidies—it’s adding financial landmines. The climate clock is ticking, but we’re fiddling with tariffs like we’ve got all the time in the world.
If they really wanted to support local manufacturers, there were better ways. You don’t build an industry by punishing the consumer. You invest, you create partnerships, you slowly shift dependency. You don’t burn the bridge while you're still halfway across it.
And don’t even get me started on the social impact. For households that almost had enough to switch to solar—this tax just locked them into a lifetime of blackouts and inflated bills. People were starting to believe they could be energy-independent. Now? They're back to generators and candles. It’s not just bad policy—it’s cruel.
We should be furious. Not just because it's unfair, but because it's short-sighted. Solar isn’t just about saving a few rupees on your bill. It's about independence, stability, survival. It's about moving forward. And this 18% tax? It’s dragging us back.
Chat Now