KARACHI: Energy equipment distributor NetLine Ltd plans to raise funds through the stock exchange after setting up a state-of-the-art solar panel plant in Islamabad.

Speaking to reporters at the company’s head office on Monday, NetLine Ltd Director Umair Zavary said the firm recently received a valuation of $4.5 million from Intermarket Securities, a Karachi-based brokerage house.

Based on the independent valuation, the energy equipment distributor has just concluded a Series A round in which it raised an undisclosed amount from a “leading logistics and freight company,” he added.

The Zavary family still retains a majority stake and management control in the firm, which deals in solar panels, industrial UPS, automatic voltage regulators, energy storage (batteries) and DC electrifiers.

The company will use the raised funds to set up offices in the Gulf region and expand operations in lithium-ion (rechargeable) batteries as well as electric vehicle–charging segments, Mr Zavary said.

More importantly, the company will set up a plant on a three-acre industrial estate on the outskirts of Islamabad to initially assemble solar panels at an investment of $3.5m. The number of panels produced in the first phase will be enough to generate 180 megawatts on an annual basis.

The second phase of expansion will take place by the end of 2024 in which the company will start manufacturing solar panels based on Turkish technology, he said.

“The size of investment for the second phase is going to be $5m,” he said, noting that the company is aiming for a public listing in 2024 through the exchange’s main board.

The third phase of expansion, beginning in 2026, will see an investment of $20m, he said. That’s because the final phase will involve the mining of quartz — a common mineral that’s refined to yield silicon, which is used heavily in energy equipment.

Published in Dawn, December 27th, 2022