The federal government has refuted claims made by a leading news channel about a change in the policy of net metering, which allows residential and commercial electricity consumers to sell solar energy generated at rooftops to power distribution companies.

Geo News reported earlier on Wednesday that the government had decided to amend the net metering regulations and to introduce two different tariffs for the purchase and selling of solar energy. The TV channel also claimed that net-metering was being discontinued and that the government will also introduce a fixed tax on consumers who have installed solar systems.

It said the prime minister had ordered the authorities to move summaries on the decisions he had made.

However, soon after the news report was aired, the Power Division issued a rebuttal, saying media outlets should have contacted the Power Division, Aaj News reported.

The statement said there was no truth in the reports of ending the policy of net-metering. No instructions have been received from the prime minister about net metering policy, the statement said.

LESCO, the utility supplying electricity to the Lahore region, also issued a statement and said that there was not truth in the claims about ending net-metering and that consumers should not believe in such reports.

The government plans to alter the solar net-metering policy were first reported by Business Recorder in April. The leading business daily said the government was planning to reduced the buyback rates for electricity from consumers who had installed solar systems.

Weeks later a report in Express Tribune claimed the solar net-metering was being replaced with ‘gross metering’. The arrangement would involve installation of two separate electricity meters at houses with solar systems: one for sending electricity produced by rooftop solar panels to the national grid and other for pulling electricity from the national grid at night.

Similarly, there was also a claim about levying a fixed tax on consumers with solar systems. The Power Division has already rejected the claim.