Net metering approvals take 6-10 months — the paperwork is the real bottleneck to rooftop solar
I have installed over 400 solar systems in Faisalabad and the single biggest complaint from customers is not the price — it is the wait. A net metering license involves the DISCO, an inspection, a meter change, and file movement between desks that can take anywhere from 6 to 10 months. Customers pay for a system in March and start exporting units in December. Meanwhile the file status is a mystery; people literally pay agents just to find out where their application is sitting. A tracking and documentation service that prepares flawless applications and follows them through FESCO/LESCO would cut approval time in half. The demand is enormous and completely unserved. I know the process inside out and am happy to advise anyone who wants to build this.
A high-conviction problem with strong founder-market fit signals. The combination of severe price asymmetry, accessible demographics, and existing infrastructure makes this buildable within 9 months by a small team.
Solutions · 2
A net-metering application tracker that files, follows up, and escalates — TurboTax for DISCOs
Build a service where the installer or customer uploads documents once; the platform generates a complete, error-free application package (most delays start with objections over trivial defects), submits it, then tracks every stage with the DISCO through runners who physically visit offices weekly. Customers see a live status bar instead of a black hole. Charge PKR 15-20k flat — installers would bundle it into every quote. Start with LESCO and FESCO where volumes are highest.
Publish a public dashboard of approval times per DISCO office — sunlight speeds up queues
Crowdsource application dates and approval dates from solar groups (thousands of members share this constantly). Publish average processing time per sub-division office, updated monthly, with the slowest offices named. NEPRA has processing-time rules nobody enforces; a public scoreboard gives journalists and energy ministry people a stick. Costs almost nothing to run and pairs well with any filing service.
Discussion
Confirmed from the installer side. I tell customers 8 months honestly and lose the sale to whoever promises 2. The liars are setting market expectations.
Our building's commercial connection application is at month 9. The file has been 'with the SE office' since March. Nobody can tell us what that means.
The factory version of this took us 14 months. We ran diesel gensets the whole time on power we had already bought panels for. The economic waste is national-scale.