From April 2025 through March 2026, almost two-thirds of Pakistan’s electricity came from low-carbon sources, while just over a third came from fossil fuels. Solar and hydropower each supplied about 24% of electricity, together accounting for almost half of the total. Nuclear contributed another 13%, and wind around 3%. On the fossil side, gas supplied roughly 19% and coal about 17%. Pakistan therefore already has a predominantly clean electricity mix, with solar, hydropower and nuclear forming its backbone.

Is Electricity Growing in Pakistan?

Pakistan’s electricity consumption per person remains below its historical peak, even as low-carbon generation reaches a new high. The latest 2026 figure is about 660 kWh per person, roughly 67 kWh below the 2023 record of 728 kWh—around a 9% shortfall. This is a concerning gap as electrification and growing digital services require more electricity. By contrast, low-carbon electricity generation reached about 424 kWh per person, around 14 kWh above its previous record in 2025. Clean electricity is making welcome progress, but these per-person figures do not establish whether total national electricity consumption is growing.

Suggestions

Pakistan can build on its existing strengths by expanding solar and nuclear electricity generation, supported by investment in transmission, distribution and storage. Solar already supplies almost a quarter of its electricity; useful examples include North Macedonia, where solar supplies 40%, and the US state of Nevada, where it supplies 35%. For nuclear expansion, Pakistan could study South Korea, where nuclear provides 25% of electricity, and France, where it provides about two-thirds, particularly their approaches to sustained construction and operational expertise. Wind can also complement these sources: Morocco, a relevant example for developing wind in suitable locations, generates 20% of its electricity from wind. Together, these clean technologies can support greater electricity availability while reducing reliance on fossil fuels and their climate and air-pollution impacts.

History

Historically, Pakistan’s low-carbon electricity growth depended heavily on hydropower before nuclear and solar became increasingly important. During the 1990s, hydro generation rose by about 3 TWh in both 1992 and 1994, but fell by a similar amount in 1999. The early 2000s brought strong hydro gains of roughly 3–5 TWh in 2002, 2003 and 2005, followed by a decline in 2007. Hydropower remained variable through the 2010s: gains in 2010 and a particularly strong 9.5 TWh increase in 2018 were interspersed with declines in 2011, 2017 and 2019. Nuclear added about 3 TWh in 2017, then delivered major increases of roughly 6 TWh in each of 2021 and 2022. Solar subsequently accelerated, adding nearly 4 TWh in 2023, about 9 TWh in 2024 and almost 18 TWh in 2025, followed by another 4 TWh in the latest 2026 figures. Alongside a hydro increase of about 6 TWh in 2025, these gains mark an encouraging broadening of Pakistan’s clean electricity supply.

Electricity Imports and Exports

Balance of Trade

* 12M = Last 12 months (Apr 2025 – Mar 2026) — a rolling 12-month period, not a calendar year.