Pakistan's Clean Energy Revolution

Our planet is in trouble. The effects of climate change are playing out before our eyes, with January 2025 being the warmest on record. Myriad studies have been conducted in response to these worsening conditions, and the results are conclusive. Accounting for over 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and nearly 90% of all carbon dioxide emissions, burning fossil fuels is by far the largest contributor to climate change. To mitigate the effects of this, and to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, this statistic needs to change, and it needs to do so urgently. Declaring energy to simultaneously be the ‘heart of the climate challenge – and key to the solution’, the UN emphasises both the logic and necessity of transitioning to clean and renewable sources. This has been reflected in the Sustainable Development Goals, which recognise adopting new energy solutions as central to combatting climate change. The targets set forth are indeed ambitious. Within the uncomfortably close deadline of 2030, this goal hopes to see universal access to modern energy and significantly increase renewable energy in the global mix. Perhaps the most challenging facet of this goal, however, is to ensure that by 2030, developing countries, small island states and landlocked regions will all receive the upgraded infrastructure and technology needed for the supply of these sustainable energy services. 

Pakistan makes for a fascinating case study. Despite its developing economy, Pakistan has emerged as a top performer in the renewable energy sector, exceeding its more developed, high-income rivals. Indeed, a recent Global Electricity Review conducted by the think tank Ember, reveals that, by the end of 2024, Pakistan had imported more solar panels than almost any other nation in the world. In a single year, Pakistan imported 22 gigawatts of solar panels, exceeding the amount installed by the UK in the past five years and the total amount of panels installed by Canada. Furthermore, in 2024, 47% of Pakistan’s electricity was generated from low-carbon sources, outperforming the global average of 41%. Unexpectedly, Pakistan has become a name to watch on the global climate stage. 

This clean energy success story is even more impressive when one considers the turbulent geopolitical history of the country. Subject to nuclear tensions with India, an ongoing war against terrorism and a shifting rule between military and elected governments, Pakistan is a nation that is characterised by ongoing economic and political instability. So how has a vulnerable, lower-middle income country with no national climate programme achieved clean energy feats that put many Global North nations to shame? 

According to Muhammad Mustafa Amjad, Programme Director at Renewables First, Pakistan’s solar surge can be explained as a ‘survival response’ to Pakistan’s inefficient and unreliable energy grid. In the past two decades, Pakistan’s per capita electricity consumption has increased by 87%. The country’s energy supply appears incapable of meeting this demand: many of the population use less than four hours of electricity per day, and up to 40 million citizens live without access to electricity at all. Inefficient government policies have only exacerbated this crisis, causing the price of electricity to rapidly increase. Thus, many of the population have found themselves paying exorbitant prices for unreliable electricity marked by frequent power outages. This has seen many citizens taking matters into their own hands by buying cheap solar installations from China to use as their primary energy source. It is local businesses and households, therefore, who are responsible for this clean energy shift.

This local solar installation hasn’t necessarily been motivated by environmental interests, but rather by economic logic. The cheap prices of Chinese solar panels have been the bedrock of the importing boon. In fact, this has become the most economically viable option, with $1.4 billion worth of Chinese solar panels being installed in the country within the first half of 2024. Since Pakistan receives an average of nine-and-a-half hours of daily sun, these solar panels are far more reliable than the alternative energy provided by the national grid. Individuals are now using energy from solar panels throughout the day, only relying on national systems as a backup. Multinational companies with factories in Pakistan are also capitalising on this deal, acquiring savings of up to 70% on electricity bills.  

The case of Pakistan therefore represents an energy transition that is bottom-up, decentralised and demand-led. The only danger is ensuring that the country’s infrastructure can keep up with the shift. Indeed, the switch to renewable solar energy is occurring outside formal energy networks, consequently jeopardising the national grid. Doomed by outdated infrastructure and inefficient production techniques, state-owned public energy providers are at risk of a ‘utility death spiral’ whereby their financial base crumbles under pressure. Therefore, what Pakistan needs now, is for its government to work alongside this solar switch to manage the scale of sustainable transition. Nevertheless, Pakistan still represents a promising precedent for other developing economies who can follow their example of pursuing alternative energy models. 

Pakistan’s progress should also be considered alongside the slacking, evidenced by inter alia Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accords, of more developed countries in the Global North. A member of the Paris Agreement, Pakistan has hugely exceeded their initial projection of reducing 2030 emissions by 20%. By the 2021 update, Pakistan announced a 50% reduction from their projected emissions, promising 15% of this unconditionally. This is particularly interesting in comparison to countries such as the USA, whose progress in achieving their targets was deemed insufficient by the Climate Action Tracker.

Furthermore, Pakistan’s clean energy success is endearingly modest. There have been no glittering technological advancements; this move has been carried out by local citizens in a practical, logical way and at a steady pace. This is particularly ironic when compared to the astoundingly arrogant actions of President Trump, whose tariffs have taken a sledgehammer to the USA’s clean energy transition. With China possessing 80% of the world’s solar industry, Trump’s tariffs against the country will cause increased costs for American consumers. This is particularly troubling considering the USA imported nearly 95 million solar panels in 2024, mainly from Asian countries. Furthermore, even panels that are manufactured within the USA rely on Chinese materials such as polysilicon. Therefore, the announcement of these tariffs both significantly undermine the USA’s transition towards clean energy and will inevitably wreak havoc upon the solar industry. 

With this in mind, it is clear that the world has a lot to learn from Pakistan. The country has shown, with an impressive humility, the feasibility of transitioning towards clean energy solutions. And so, countries in the Global North who boast stronger economies and political stability than Pakistan should take note. The drive towards a cleaner planet, though challenging, is not impossible. But it does require global cooperation. Now is not the time for arrogance or ego. Now, more than ever, what is needed is sensible, long-term and collaborative thinking to the approaching clean energy deadlines.

Image: Wikimedia Commons/Partonez

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