While China built 52 coal plants last year, the Biden administration spent four years trying to kill America's. Trump just spent $700 million to bring them back.
President Trump on Thursday invoked the Defense Production Act to direct nearly $700 million toward coal plants, coal mines, and export infrastructure, telling Americans the money will support more than 14,000 jobs and cut electricity costs by $50 billion. The Cold War-era law lets the president mobilize domestic industries for national security purposes. Trump used it as electricity demand surges and energy prices keep squeezing households, made worse by the conflict in Iran rattling global oil markets.
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Under Biden, the EPA issued regulations that would have forced the closure of dozens of coal plants. The DOE has since issued nearly 19 emergency orders just to keep aging plants running long enough to prevent blackouts. Thursday's announcement is the administration's most aggressive move yet to stop the bleeding and go on offense.
From the Oval Office, Trump was joined by Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, and a group of governors and members of Congress. The money will protect 14 coal plants and 42 coal mines, build two new plants, and construct a major new export terminal.
.@POTUS: "Today, we're taking historic action to bring down the price of energy and the cost of living for all Americans with the power of clean, beautiful coal... As a result of the $700M investment that I'm announcing today, we will protect 14 coal plants and 42 coal mines, and… pic.twitter.com/37elZ0ImxF
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) June 4, 2026
More than $425 million will be used to upgrade and keep open 13 existing coal-fired plants across West Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Arizona, Indiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, North Dakota, and Wisconsin. Another $185 million, pulled directly from climate programs, will fund new coal projects in Alaska, Maryland, and West Virginia. The remaining $75 million will be used to build the West Gateway coal export terminal in Northern California, with capacity to handle 12 million tons of coal for markets in Japan, Taiwan, and other Asian nations.
In the presser, Trump didn't hold back on wind.
"If you look at China, if you look at so many of the successful countries, they're using coal. If you look at some of the real great failures, countries, they're using wind. This keeps blowing, blowing, blowing, and puts you right out of business."
He added that China built those 52 coal plants last year while selling windmills to American buyers. The only reason China builds windmills, Trump said, is to sell them to suckers.
AI infrastructure, data centers, and manufacturing are driving up electricity demand. The grid needs power that runs around the clock, regardless of the weather, and coal does that.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright argued coal remains indispensable to both electricity generation and heavy industry:
"It's been the largest source of global electricity for 125 years in a row and will be for decades to come in the United States. It remains a critical source of our electricity. Also, a critical source for our industry. We can't produce steel and cement and other materials without coal."
Thursday was not a one-off. Trump signed an executive order in February directing the Pentagon to pursue long-term supply contracts with coal-fired plants. The Interior Department has expanded coal leasing on federal lands. The DOE has kept aging plants running through emergency orders rather than letting them close. The administration is building a wall around coal, one order at a time.
National Mining Association President Rich Nolan said coal shields consumers from volatile energy prices and can meet the current surge in demand.
Environmental groups predictably objected. "What's next — a taxpayer bailout to build new phone booths?" said Kit Kennedy of the Natural Resources Defense Council. Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon had a different read. He said the United States "can burn coal better" than anyone else, and he called it "the most secure, plentiful, reliable, dispatchable source of electric generation in the country." Gordon said officials in Japan and Taiwan expressed interest in Wyoming coal during meetings last month.
If California tries to block the Oakland export terminal, Gordon said, Wyoming will see them in court.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump’s leadership and bold policies, America’s economy is back on track.
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