Customs Foil Attempt to Smuggle Solar Batteries Worth Millions Under Scrap Cover

KARACHI:Pakistan Customs has successfully foiled an attempt to smuggle millions of rupees worth of functional solar batteries under the guise of scrap material.

According to media reports, the incident occurred a few days ago near the ICI Bridge in Karachi, where several trucks were passing by with containers loaded on them. Suddenly, some vehicles arrived and signaled the trucks to stop.

Upon noticing government vehicles, the truck drivers immediately halted their vehicles. The drivers informed Customs officials that the containers were sealed, and they could not open them without informing their company.

During the questioning, one of the drivers revealed that a representative from the clearing company was accompanying them. The representative was summoned, and when questioned about the contents of the containers, he failed to provide satisfactory answers. This prompted the Customs officials to halt the trucks and conduct a detailed inspection.

A Customs spokesperson confirmed that the operation was based on confidential information received from an intelligence agency, which led to the uncovering of a major smuggling attempt.

The officials revealed that the plan was to smuggle functional solar batteries under the cover of scrap batteries. A thorough inspection of the containers at the MARI PUR warehouse resulted in the recovery of 6,748 batteries, which appeared to be old but were still functional. Despite being labeled as “scrap,” laboratory tests confirmed that the batteries were fully usable.

The spokesperson added that the total value of the imported batteries was around 134.96 million rupees, while the eight containers were valued at 4 million rupees, bringing the total worth to approximately 138.96 million rupees.

Under Pakistan’s import policy, the import of functional old batteries is prohibited. Consequently, the batteries were confiscated, and a case was registered against the importer and the clearing agent under the Customs Act of 1969.

**Impact on the Solar Market**
There has been a noticeable decrease in the prices of solar panels and related equipment in the market in recent months. Traders in Karachi’s Solar Street attribute this price drop to global market trends and a relatively stable dollar rate in Pakistan.

However, local solar system installers argue that the decrease in prices cannot be attributed solely to smuggled goods. They point out that the demand for used equipment, including batteries, has remained low in the local market, as consumers prefer new solar equipment over used items.

Traders also stress that while prices of solar panels, inverters, and batteries have decreased, it is mainly due to global factors, not the influx of smuggled goods.