Rs22/Unit Evening Buyback: Does a Battery Fix Your Net-Billing Math in 2026?

• By Best Solar Company PK
• 12 Aug, 2026
• Net Metering
• 8 min read

For eighteen months, Pakistani solar owners have watched their net-metering economics crumble. First came the buyback cuts, then the shift from net metering to net billing. Now, in August 2026, the Power Division has floated a proposal that could change the calculus again — this time in the prosumer's favour, but only for those willing to add a battery.

The idea is simple and, for once, homeowner-friendly: pay solar-plus-battery owners **Rs18–22 per kWh** for electricity they export back to the grid during the evening peak, between **5PM and 10PM**. If it clears NEPRA, storage stops being a backup luxury and becomes an income stream. So does adding a battery now finally flip your net-billing math back to profitable? Let's run the numbers.

Why Your Net-Billing Math Broke in the First Place

To understand the new proposal, you need to see the hole it is trying to fill. Effective **9 February 2026**, NEPRA replaced net metering with a **net billing** model for all new solar connections.

Under the old net metering, one exported unit cancelled one imported unit — a clean one-to-one swap worth the full retail tariff (often above Rs40/unit in higher slabs). Net billing killed that swap. Now:

• Every unit you **import** is billed at the full government slab tariff.
• Every unit you **export** is bought back at a slashed rate — NEPRA approved roughly **Rs8.13 per unit** for new prosumers, down from the earlier Rs27 range.
• New connections are locked into a **five-year contract**.

Existing net-metering users were grandfathered at around **Rs25.32/unit**, but anyone installing in 2026 faces the new, far less generous arithmetic. Exporting cheap daytime surplus at Rs8 while buying it back at Rs40 after sunset is a losing trade. That is exactly the gap a battery — and this new tariff — aims to close.

What the August 2026 Evening Buyback Proposal Actually Says

A consultant to the Power Division has recommended a **Time-of-Use (ToU) net billing mechanism**. Instead of one flat export rate all day, exports would be priced by the clock. The headline is the **Rs18–22/kWh** paid for energy pushed to the grid during the 5–10PM window — the hours when national demand is most punishing.

The rationale is grid economics, not generosity. Pakistan's evening peak demand has crossed **26,000 MW**, and utilities burn expensive furnace-oil and imported LNG generation to meet it. Paying a distributed fleet of home batteries Rs20/unit to discharge is cheaper than firing up peaker plants. Your battery effectively becomes a mini power station the grid rents at dusk.

The timing is no accident. Pakistan imported a record **652.2 MWh of lithium-ion batteries in April 2026**, part of roughly **6.004 GWh (Rs126 billion)** shipped in between January 2024 and June 2026. Policy is racing to catch up with hardware already on the ground.

Running the Math: Does a Battery Now Make Sense?

Here is where the decision gets concrete. The strategy under a ToU buyback is deliberate: **charge your battery from your own panels during the cheap solar hours, then discharge to the grid at 5–10PM** for Rs18–22, rather than selling that surplus at Rs8 at noon.

Consider a household that can bank and export **5 units** every evening:

| Scenario | Export rate | Daily evening value | Monthly value | |---|---|---|---| | Flat net billing (no battery) | Rs8.13/unit | Rs40.65 | ~Rs1,220 | | Evening ToU buyback (with battery) | Rs20/unit avg | Rs100 | ~Rs3,000 | | Extra earnings from storage | — | ~Rs59 | ~Rs1,780/month |

That Rs20/unit arbitrage — buying nothing but selling stored sunshine high — is the real prize. Add the self-consumption savings (running your own evening load off the battery instead of Rs40+ grid units) and the monthly benefit climbs well past the export income alone.

Now weigh it against hardware cost. In 2026, a **5kWh LiFePO4 lithium battery** runs roughly **Rs185,000–310,000**; a **10kWh** setup (two stacked units) or a **14–16kWh** system lands around **Rs420,000–780,000**. A quality lithium bank lasts the full 10–15 years, unlike lead-acid, which needs three or four replacements over the same period.

Combine evening buyback income, peak-load self-consumption, and outage backup, and a mid-sized battery can realistically pay back in **4–6 years** if the Rs18–22 rate is approved — versus a battery bought purely for backup, which never truly "pays back" at all.

The Catches Every Buyer Should Know

Before you rush to the shop, temper the optimism with these realities:

• **It is a proposal, not law.** NEPRA has not yet approved the ToU rate. Buy a battery today mainly for backup and self-use; treat evening buyback income as upside, not a guarantee.
• **Regulation lags hardware.** There are still no finalised standards for battery registration, grid-connection protocols, or storage metering — the framework is being written as adoption surges.
• **You need the right inverter.** Grid-export from a battery requires a hybrid inverter capable of scheduled discharge and, eventually, ToU-compliant smart metering.
• **Sizing matters.** Oversize the battery and your payback stretches; undersize it and you cannot export enough to matter. Match capacity to the 5-unit-per-evening kind of surplus your panels genuinely produce.

For a fuller picture of the rules you are signing up for, see our guide to Pakistan's shift from net metering to net billing and how to size a home solar-plus-storage system.

Frequently Asked Questions

**What is the new Rs18–22 per unit evening battery buyback in Pakistan?** It is an August 2026 Power Division proposal for a Time-of-Use net billing rate that would pay solar-plus-battery owners Rs18–22/kWh for electricity exported to the grid during the 5PM–10PM peak, when national demand exceeds 26,000 MW. It is designed to reward stored solar energy released at the moment the grid needs it most.

**Is the evening buyback rate approved yet?** No. As of August 2026 it is a consultant's recommendation to the Power Division and still requires NEPRA approval. Base your battery purchase on backup and self-consumption value first, and treat the buyback as a likely bonus.

**Does adding a battery make net billing profitable again?** It can. By storing daytime solar and exporting at Rs18–22 in the evening instead of Rs8 at midday, a household exporting about 5 units nightly could earn roughly Rs1,780 extra per month, on top of avoided peak-tariff imports — putting battery payback in the 4–6 year range if the rate passes.

**How much does a solar battery cost in Pakistan in 2026?** A 5kWh lithium (LiFePO4) battery costs about Rs185,000–310,000, while 14–16kWh systems run Rs420,000–780,000, depending on brand, BMS quality, and warranty. Quality lithium lasts 10–15 years without replacement.

The Bottom Line

Flat net billing broke the solar business case in early 2026, but the evening buyback proposal is the first policy move that genuinely rewards storage rather than punishing export. If NEPRA approves Rs18–22/unit for the 5–10PM window, a well-sized lithium battery shifts from a backup expense to a revenue-earning asset — and your net-billing math can swing back to profitable.

Our advice: buy the battery you need for outages and evening self-use today, choose a hybrid inverter that is ToU-ready, and you will be positioned to profit the moment the rate goes live. **Talk to Best Solar Company PK about a storage-ready system before the incentive lands.**

Sources: ProPakistani, Profit by Pakistan Today, The Express Tribune, TechJuice

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.