Trump Says He’s Authorizing Use of Coal for Energy Production

The United States has moved away from coal-fired power plants as its primary source of electricity since their peak in the 2000s.
Trump Says He’s Authorizing Use of Coal for Energy Production
Piles of coal at PacifiCorp's Hunter coal-fired power plant outside of Castle Dale, Utah, on Nov. 14, 2019. George Frey/AFP via Getty Images
Aldgra Fredly
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President Donald Trump said on Monday that he was authorizing his administration to use coal-fired power plants for energy production to counter China’s economic advantage.

In a Truth Social post, Trump stated that the nation’s coal industry had been “held captive by environmental extremists,” which he said had allowed countries such as China to gain an economic advantage over the United States by opening hundreds of coal-fired power plants.