Trump authorizes his administration to open new coal-fired power plants in the U.S.

President Donald Trump says his administration will open new coal-fired power plants in the U.S.  to help the U.S. compete economically with other countries. 

“After years of being held captive by Environmental Extremists, Lunatics, Radicals, and Thugs, allowing other Countries, in particular China, to gain tremendous Economic advantage over us by opening up hundreds of all Coal Fire Power Plants, I am authorizing my Administration to immediately begin producing Energy with BEAUTIFUL, CLEAN COAL,” Trump said in a Truth Social post Monday.

The amount of electricity produced from coal declined from a high of 1,847 terawatt hours in 2010 – enough to power more than 171 million households – to a low of 675 terawatt hours in 2023 – enough to power 62.5 million homes. Approximately 40% of the remaining coal-fired capacity in the U.S. is planned to be retired by 2030, according to a 2023 study by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. 

Trump's announcement provided no details on how the goal would be accomplished.