According to a Bloomberg report confirmed by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, President Donald Trump is moving to boost coal mining and use in the U.S., aiming to power energy-hungry data centers and revive the struggling fossil fuel industry.
In an executive order to be signed Tuesday afternoon, Trump will direct federal agencies to take several steps to support coal. These include resuming the sale of coal mining rights on federal land, designating coal as a critical mineral, and accelerating coal exports and related technologies.
“Today at 3PM, President Trump will sign an Executive Order to reinvigorate AFFORDABLE, RELIABLE, AND CLEAN COAL!” Leavitt confirmed on X.
Today at 3PM, President Trump will sign an Executive Order to reinvigorate AFFORDABLE, RELIABLE, AND CLEAN COAL!
Coal is critical to achieving American Energy and AI Dominance. Read more here⬇️https://t.co/Yz26ERVQtN
— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) April 8, 2025
From Bloomberg:
The executive order underscores Trump’s commitment to tapping America’s coal resources as a source of both electricity to run data centers and heat to forge steel. The president and top administration officials have made clear boosting coal-fired power is a top priority, one they see as intertwined with national security and the US standing in a global competition to dominate the artificial intelligence industry.
The US is “way ahead right now in the AI race with China,” Trump told reporters Monday during an event in the Oval Office. But, Trump added, the provision of electric power for data centers is critical to maintaining that advantage.
Trump vowed to revive coal while campaigning for president last year, following through on a political priority he also embraced his first term in the White House. The order comes as his administration weighs other steps to boost the fossil fuel, including tapping emergency authority to reopen shuttered coal-fired plants that have closed while preventing others from closing.
Trump is slated to sign the executive order during a 3 p.m. event in the East Room of the White House, with attendees set to include executives from some of the US’s biggest mining companies, including Peabody Energy Corp., Core Natural Resources Inc. and Ramaco Resources, Inc.
This story is developing…
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