250 Units Now? How to Size Your Solar System to Stay a Protected Consumer in 2026

• By Best Solar Company PK
• 29 Oct, 2026
• Energy Savings
• 7 min read

If you run a home in Pakistan and keep your grid usage low to stay a **protected consumer**, a change is coming that could reshape how you size your solar system. On 27 October 2026, Power Minister Sardar Awais Leghari told the Senate that the government is considering raising the protected-consumer threshold from 200 to 250 units a month — while shifting relief toward poverty-based targeting because many solar homes have been using panels to slip under the 200-unit line and claim subsidised rates.

Nothing has been notified yet. Your bill still follows the 200-unit rule today. But the direction of travel is clear, and it changes the math on how big a solar array you actually want.

What "protected consumer" means — and why it matters so much

A **protected consumer** is a residential user who stays at or below 200 units a month for six or more consecutive months. That status is worth real money. Here is the gap, using FY2025-26 domestic slab rates:

| Slab | Protected rate (PKR/unit) | Unprotected rate (PKR/unit) | |---|---|---| | 1–100 units | 10.54 | 22.44 | | 101–200 units | 13.01 | 28.91 | | 201–300 units | — | 33.10 | | Fixed charge | 200–300 /kW | 400 /month |

The difference is huge. A protected household's first 100 units cost about Rs 10.54, while an unprotected one pays Rs 22.44 for the very same units — more than double. That is before fuel price adjustment (FPA), quarterly tariff adjustments, and taxes stack on top.

The 201-unit cliff and the six-month penalty

The reason sizing matters is the cliff. Touch 201 units and you don't just pay the higher rate on that one extra unit — your whole bill can re-slab at unprotected rates. Worse, protected status is judged over a rolling window, so a single spike can push you into the costly category for up to six months.

Leghari also said the government is working to **end that six-month penalty** for briefly crossing the line. If that happens alongside a 250-unit limit, the monthly ceiling you need to design for would move — and the punishment for an occasional overshoot would soften.

Why solar homes triggered the rethink

Here is the uncomfortable part. The minister told the Senate that the number of consumers using up to 200 units has reached around 20 million, and that most of them now use solar energy. Many are not poor at all — they are middle- and upper-income households that installed rooftop solar specifically to drive grid consumption below 200 units and pocket subsidised protected rates meant for low-income families.

That is why the government wants to decouple relief from units consumed and tie it to actual household need (a poverty-based model, likely routed through existing social-protection data). For an honest homeowner the message is simple: a subsidy you qualify for today because of your solar system may not survive the shift to need-based targeting.

Net billing changes the calculation too

Don't plan your system size around old net-metering economics. Since 9 February 2026, NEPRA's Prosumer Regulations 2026 replaced net metering with **net billing** for new solar connections. Key differences:

• Exported units are no longer swapped one-for-one against imported units.
• Imported electricity is charged at the full prevailing slab tariff.
• The buyback rate for exported surplus dropped sharply — reported in a band roughly between PKR 8 and PKR 11+ per unit for new applicants, versus the old ~PKR 22–27.
• The buyback contract term fell from seven years to five.
• Existing net-metering consumers largely keep their older, higher export rate (around Rs 25–27/unit) for now.

The practical lesson: under net billing, exporting a lot of surplus pays little. The value is in **self-consumption** — using your own solar output directly rather than selling it cheap and buying back dear.

How to size your system to stay protected

Put the two trends together — a possible 250-unit ceiling, and net billing that rewards self-use — and a clear sizing philosophy emerges.

1. **Design to your protected ceiling, not to zero.** Your goal is to keep *net grid import* comfortably at or below the protected limit (200 units now; plan for 250 if notified). You do not need to wipe out your entire bill. 2. **Size the array to your daytime load first.** Solar produces in daylight. Match panel capacity to fridge, fans, pumps, and air-conditioning that run while the sun is up, so you self-consume instead of exporting at a low buyback rate. 3. **Leave headroom for summer.** AC season is when households blow past 200 units. A slightly larger array (or a battery) that covers peak summer daytime cooling keeps your grid import under the ceiling in the months that matter most. 4. **Add storage only if the numbers work.** With cheap buyback, a battery that shifts solar into the evening can protect your slab better than selling surplus — but run the payback before committing.

As a rough guide for a typical household with a 300–400 unit monthly appetite:

| Monthly grid target | Indicative solar size | Battery? | |---|---|---| | Stay ≤200 units | 3–5 kW | Optional | | Stay ≤250 units (if notified) | 2.5–4 kW | Optional | | Heavy summer AC, ≤250 units | 5–6 kW | Recommended |

These are starting points, not a quote. Your roof orientation, shading, load profile, and DISCO tariff all shift the answer, so get a proper load assessment. If you're new to this, our guide on choosing the right solar system size walks through the load-audit step by step, and our net metering vs net billing explainer covers the export-rate math in detail.

A practical tip from the field

When we model systems for clients chasing protected status, we design for the **12-month worst case**, not the annual average. A home averaging 180 units can still spike to 240 in June. If you size only to the average, you lose protected status exactly when bills are highest. Build in that summer buffer and your slab holds all year.

Frequently Asked Questions

**Has the protected-consumer limit actually increased to 250 units?** No. As of 29 October 2026 it is still a proposal the Power Minister described to the Senate. The 200-unit rule remains in force and no notification has been issued. Watch for an official Power Division or NEPRA notification before assuming the higher limit applies.

**Will solar homes lose their subsidised rate under poverty-based targeting?** Possibly. The government's stated aim is to direct relief to households below the poverty line rather than to everyone under the unit threshold. If that model is adopted, qualifying on units alone — the way many solar homes do now — may no longer be enough.

**Should I oversize my system to get my bill to zero?** Usually not. Under net billing, exported surplus earns a low buyback rate, so a very large array that exports heavily has a long payback. Sizing to self-consumption while staying under your protected ceiling is generally the better value.

**Does crossing 200 units once ruin my protected status?** Under current rules, yes — a single month above the limit can push you to unprotected rates for up to six months. The government says it is working to remove this six-month penalty, but that too is not yet notified.

The bottom line

The 200-to-250 shift and the move to poverty-based relief both point the same way: the easy days of gaming the slab with solar are ending. Size your system for genuine self-consumption and a realistic summer-adjusted grid ceiling, confirm your DISCO's current tariff, and treat any subsidy as a bonus rather than the foundation of your payback. Want a sizing plan built around your actual bills? Talk to our team for a free load assessment.

Best Solar Company PK designs and installs reliable solar systems in Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Lahore, Multan, Taunsa Sharif and Karachi. Contact us for a free survey and the best advice for your home or business.