FOX Business’ Lauren Simonetti takes viewers deep into the coal mine as officials push to ramp up production to meet soaring electricity demand driven by data centers, EVs and electrification.
I The Trump administration is increasing its push to revive the US coal industry as it pursues its goal of improving energy security.
Last week, the Department of Energy announced that it would provide $175 billion to finance projects to modernize, retrofit and extend the useful lives of six. coal-fired power plants serving rural and remote communities.
The agency said the move is aimed at maintaining reliable sources of energy online, while also strengthening the reliability of the electric grid and keeping electricity costs low for American homes and businesses.
The funding comes from a previously announced $525 million plan to extend the life of coal plants and increase efficiency as management looks to modernize existing plants as the fastest and most cost-effective way to provide reliable power while preserving high-wage energy jobs.
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The Trump administration is providing funding to support coal-fired power plants as part of the nation’s energy mix. (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)
“For years, previous administrations have targeted America’s coal industry and the workers who run our country, forcing early shutdowns of reliable power plants and driving up electricity costs,” it said. Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
“President Trump has ended the war on American coal and is restoring commonsense energy policy. These funds will keep America’s coal plants running, keep costs down for Americans and ensure we have the reliable energy needed to keep the lights on and power our future.”
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The administration will finance projects to extend the life of coal-fired power plants. (Jim Urquhart/Reuters)
The coal-fired power plants selected as part of the $175 million project include:
- Appalachian Power Company facilities in Letart and Winfield, West Virginia
- Buckeye Power plant in Brilliant, Ohio
- Duke Energy Carolinas plants in Sauratown Township, North Carolina
- Kentucky Utilities Corporation headquarters in Ghent, Kentucky
- Monongahela Power Company power plant in Maidsville, West Virginia
- Ohio Valley Electric Corporation plant in Cheshire, Ohio
The demand for electricity is increasing between artificial intelligence (AI) race, and data centers that consume large amounts of energy are becoming a major drain on the grid.
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Coal’s share of electricity generation has declined rapidly in recent decades. (Justin Merriman/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Trump administration’s push to increase coal as part of the nation’s energy mix comes after years of decline as coal fields closed. The decline of coal occurs amid the rise of natural gas and renewable energy sources as energy sources.
Data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) show that the total amount of coal generating electricity it peaked in 2007, when it was a 2,016 kilowatt-hour power source.
That figure drops to 675 billion kilowatt-hours from 2023, when coal’s share of electricity generation is 16.2%. Coal produced more than half of the country’s electricity in the early 2000s and peaked as a share of the energy mix in the 1980s.
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Natural gas surpassed coal as the nation’s largest source of electricity in 2016, and EIA data showed natural gas generating 43.1% of the nation’s electricity by 2023.
