Key Takeaways
- Solar panel imports have slowed significantly, dropping 61% year-over-year.
- Battery imports have surged, increasing from $42 million in FY23 to $280 million in FY26.
- The market is moving towards self-consumption and off-grid installations.
Pakistan’s solar revolution has entered its second phase, marked by a significant slowdown in the import of solar panels. According to customs data, between January and May 2026, Pakistan imported 4,574MW of solar panels, down from 11,781MW in the same period last year—a drop of 61%. The dollar value of these imports also fell by nearly half, dropping to $514 million from $1.12 billion.
Despite this slowdown, the cumulative import numbers continue to rise. By May 2026, Pakistan had imported a total of 55,700MW of solar panels, still adding volume every month. This suggests that while the rate of increase has slowed, the overall market is not shrinking but rather maturing.
The shift in focus from simply generating electricity to storing it for later use is evident through increased battery imports. In fiscal year 2026, lithium-ion battery imports surged to $280 million, up from just $42 million in FY23. By the fourth quarter of FY26 alone, battery imports accounted for 50% of total imports, indicating a growing interest in off-grid and self-consumption systems.
This trend is further supported by data showing that while cumulative panel imports reached approximately 47,200MW by the end of fiscal year 2025, only 6,485MW were officially net-metered. This means that at least 86% of imported panels never showed up as formal grid-tied connections, suggesting a significant portion was used for self-consumption or off-grid installations.
The shift in demand reflects a change from the initial phase of the solar revolution, which focused on getting as many households and businesses connected to solar power as possible. Now, there is a growing interest in storing generated energy rather than simply using it during peak hours. This includes commercial and industrial self-consumption setups, hybrid inverters paired with batteries, and off-grid installations in remote areas.
The reduction in panel costs has played a crucial role in this transition. Module prices have fallen by more than 70% since 2017, from $0.38/W to about $0.10-0.12/W by the end of 2026. This price drop has made solar energy increasingly accessible and economically viable for a wider range of consumers, driving the shift towards battery storage solutions.
While the slowdown in panel imports might initially suggest demand exhaustion, the rise in battery imports indicates that the market is evolving. The focus now lies on creating more sustainable and self-reliant energy systems, which can operate independently from the grid or reduce reliance on it significantly.
