The US administration has announced plans to invest USD 850m to support coal-fired power plants and coal exports (US Department of Energy press release, 04/06/2026). The financial package unveiled by the White House is structured into three distinct components. A first USD425m is allocated to modernise and extend the operational life of 12 existing coal power plants.
USD75m will be allocated to the West Gateway coal export terminal in Oakland, California, with a capacity of 10 Mt/year, is designed to expand West Coast export capacity and support energy exports to allied countries including Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Malaysia, according to the press release.
Finally, up to USD350m is allocated to four additional projects, including modernisation and new capacity developments. Together, these projects could add or preserve approximately 3.6 GW of coal-fired generation capacity:
- Two projects in Anchorage, Alaska, and Mt. Storm, West Virginia, plan to build new coal-fired power plants with a combined capacity of 2,850 MW.
- One project in Guayama, Puerto Rico, will retrofit and modernize an existing 510 MW coal-fired plant.
- One project in Cumberland, Maryland, plans to recommission a 205 MW coal facility that stopped operating in 2024.
US coal reserves are estimated at 218 Gt, with an additional 30 Gt of lignite. Coal and lignite production declined by 50% between 2008 and 2024, reaching 464 Mt in 2024. However, it increased by 4% in 2025, due to Trump coal-prone policies. Exports have fluctuated significantly since 2012: they rose by 25% between 2021 and 2024 to 97 Mt, but fell by 15% in 2025 to 83 Mt (Enerdata Global Energy Research).
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