By Azam Tariq

Pakistan’s rapidly expanding solar market is creating opportunities to reduce dependence on imported renewable-energy products and build domestic industrial capacity. Experts say potential investment plans by Chinese renewable solutions provider Hiconics could help advance local manufacturing, support technology transfer, and expand skilled workforce.

Hiconics, a renewable-energy solutions provider backed by China’s Midea Group, is considering manufacturing operations in Pakistan over the next five to 10 years through a phased strategy beginning with product supply, technical services, local offices and training before moving toward localized production.

The company’s potential plans come at a time when Pakistan’s renewable-energy market is witnessing significant expansion. According to a 2025 white paper by Renewables First, Pakistan imported 17.9 gigawatts of Chinese solar panels during FY25.

The report estimated cumulative solar panel imports at 50.5GW worth around $7.7 billion and noted that lithium-ion battery imports from China had exceeded $700 million since FY19, including $101.7 million during the final quarter of FY25.

Speaking with Wealth Pakistan, Ali Ahsan, Research and Publication Manager at Pakistan Solar Association, said Hiconics’ proposed investment could help address Pakistan’s continued reliance on imported renewable-energy products.

He said Pakistan had emerged as a major consumer market for solar equipment but had not yet fully benefited from the wider industrial gains associated with the sector, including manufacturing, component production, technology transfer and after-sales engineering services.

Ahsan said the focus on technical training, local employment and knowledge transfer was particularly important because Pakistan’s renewable-energy market was increasingly moving beyond utility-scale projects toward decentralised hybrid systems, battery storage and integrated energy-management solutions.

“Local assembly of inverters and storage systems would reduce import pressure and retain more industrial value within Pakistan,” he said.

He said Hiconics’ association with Midea Group could also create an “anchor effect,” encouraging smaller Chinese component suppliers and technology firms to view Pakistan not only as a sales market but also as a potential manufacturing base.

However, Ahsan stressed that investor interest alone would not be enough without a predictable industrial policy environment.

He said Pakistan should designate selected Special Economic Zones as clean-technology clusters, introduce phased local-content requirements for large renewable-energy projects, remove implementation bottlenecks in industrial zones and strengthen workforce development through collaboration among Chinese companies, technical institutes and engineering universities.

Ahsan also stressed the importance of maintaining consistency in distributed-solar policies.

Referring to the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority’s Prosumer Regulations 2026, he noted that sudden changes in electricity buyback mechanisms could affect investor confidence if broader objectives such as grid sustainability, consumer protection and downstream manufacturing growth were not managed together.

Mashhood Urfi, Energy Transition Officer at Alternate Development Services, Islamabad, told Wealth Pakistan that Hiconics’ potential entry could support Pakistan’s transition from import dependence toward localized manufacturing of solar inverters, battery energy storage systems and smart energy technologies.

He estimated that wider adoption of battery storage could cut peak electricity demand by around 10 to 15 percent, reducing the need for costly fossil-fuel-based peak generation.

Urfi said industrial clustering and policy consistency would play an important role in attracting Chinese firms toward local assembly and manufacturing.

He said renewable-energy industrial clusters around Lahore, Sialkot and Faisalabad could integrate rooftop solar and captive storage systems with export-oriented industries, especially sectors increasingly facing carbon-compliance requirements in overseas markets.

He also emphasized the need for predictable tax treatment, transparent joint-venture frameworks and structured technology-transfer pathways.

“Renewable manufacturing should not be treated as a narrow energy agenda but as part of trade, industrial competitiveness and macroeconomic resilience,” he said.

Urfi added that Pakistan’s clean-technology manufacturing strategy should also remain aligned with broader economic reform objectives.

He pointed out that the International Monetary Fund’s latest country report includes structural reform benchmarks such as semi-annual gas tariff adjustments in July 2026 and February 2027, annual power tariff adjustments in January 2027, procurement reforms and the gradual phasing out of existing fiscal incentives for Special Economic Zones and Special Technology Zones by 2035.

Credit: INP-WealthPk