February 13, 2025

This text initially appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan information group that covers local weather, vitality, and the surroundings. Join their e-newsletter here.

There may be renewed discuss of a coal energy comeback in the USA, impressed by Donald Trump’s return to the presidency and forecasts of hovering electrical energy demand.

The proof to date solely reveals that some crops are getting small extensions on their retirement dates. This implies a slowdown in coal’s fee of decline, which is unhealthy for the surroundings, however it does little to alter the long-term trajectory for the home coal trade.

In October, I wrote about how 5 of the nation’s 10 largest coal-fired energy crops had retirement dates. Right this moment, I’m revisiting the record, offering some updates after which taking just a few steps again to take a look at US coal crops as an entire. Contemplate this the “earlier than” image that may be judged towards the “after” in 4 years.

Some coal plant house owners have already pushed again retirement timetables. The most important instance, this one from simply earlier than the election, is the Gibson plant in Indiana, the second-largest coal plant within the nation. It’s set to close in 2038 instead of 2035, following an announcement in October from the proprietor, Duke Power.

However the adjustments don’t represent a coal comeback on this nation. For that to occur, energy firms would should be constructing new crops to switch the various which might be closing, and there may be virtually no improvement of recent coal crops.

That mentioned, there have been some adjustments since October.

As lately as just a few months in the past, Southern Co. was saying it meant to shut Plant Bowen in Georgia by 2035 on the newest. Bowen is the most important coal plant within the nation, with a summer time capability of three,200 megawatts.