Trump Orders DoD to Buy Coal Plant Electricity

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday directing the Department of Defense to purchase electricity from coal-fired power plants, aiming to bolster the declining industry amid a shift toward natural gas and renewable energy sources.

The order instructs Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Energy Secretary Chris Wright to negotiate long-term contracts with coal plants to supply power to military installations and critical facilities. According to White House officials, the measure seeks to guarantee uninterrupted, on-demand baseload power for defense operations. At a White House event in the East Room, Trump described the initiative as a way to ensure reliable energy, stating, "We're going to be buying a lot of coal through the military now, and it's going to be less expensive and actually much more effective than what we have been using for many, many years."

Trump also announced that the Department of Energy would allocate $175 million to support six projects aimed at extending the operational life of coal-fired plants in rural and remote areas, including locations in West Virginia, Ohio, North Carolina, and Kentucky. These funds are intended to upgrade and...