Trump announces $700M plan to support coal plants, citing national security

The president is using the Defense Production Act to funnel nearly $700 million into coal infrastructure, framing aging power plants as critical to AI and national defense.

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Add us on Google by Editorial Team Jun. 5, 2026

President Trump is betting big on coal. On June 4, the administration announced a federal support package worth nearly $700 million to prop up the US coal industry, invoking the Defense Production Act of 1950 to justify the spending as a matter of national security.

The centerpiece argument: reliable electricity is essential for powering AI data centers and reducing foreign energy dependence.

Where the money is going

The package breaks down into three main buckets, each targeting a different piece of the coal supply chain.

Roughly $425 million will go toward upgrades at 13 existing coal-fired power plants spread across multiple states.

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Another $75 million is earmarked for a new coal export terminal in Oakland, California.

The remaining $200 million, flowing through the Department of Energy, will fund the construction of two entirely new coal plants in Alaska and West Virginia. If completed, these would be the first new coal-fired facilities built in the US since 2013.

In total, the administration claims the initiative will safeguard 14 coal plants and 42 coal mines nationwide.

The national security framing

The Defense Production Act is a Cold War-era law originally designed to ensure the US could mobilize industrial capacity during emergencies. Previous administrations have also invoked the DPA to maintain operations at particular coal plants during extreme weather events to prevent blackouts.

Environmental groups are not buying it. Critics have called the move an inappropriate use of emergency powers to sustain operations that the market has deemed economically unviable.

What this means for energy and crypto investors

The administration didn’t mention Bitcoin mining or digital asset infrastructure in the announcement.

For traditional energy investors, the near-term effect could be a modest boost for coal equities and related mining companies. Natural gas remains cheaper in most US markets, and the levelized cost of new solar and wind continues to fall. A $700 million lifeline can keep plants running, but it can’t make coal competitive on a per-megawatt-hour basis without ongoing support.

Given that no new coal plant has been built in the US since 2013, the market had already rendered its verdict on coal’s future.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.