Trump orders Pentagon to buy coal-fired electricity for military bases

In his latest bid to boost demand for fossil fuels, the United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump has ordered the Pentagon to buy electricity from coal-fired plants.

Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday directing the Department of War to “prioritize long-term Power Purchase Agreements with America’s beautiful, clean coal fleet to ensure military installations and critical defense facilities have uninterrupted, on-demand baseload power.”

The decision comes amid increasing pressure to shift to renewable energy sources due to their cost effectiveness and climate hazards posed by fossil fuel burning.

Trump’s executive order did not specify how much electricity would be purchased from coal-fired plants and under what financial terms; however, it directs the Secretary of Energy to coordinate with the Secretary of War on this matter.

The 47th POTUS has also renewed the charter of National Coal Council, a federal advisory committee terminated during the former President Joe Biden’s administration.

The 79-year-old Republican politician also hosted coal industry executives and miners at the White House on Wednesday. Speaking at the event he credited the coal industry with “heating our homes and fueling our factories.”

Trump’s renewed emphasis on coal comes amid the decline in fossil fuel powered energy production in the U.S. Data show that coal-fired electricity production fell by more than half between 2008 and 2023.

According to 2023 figures, natural gas accounted for 41 percent of the U.S. energy production and renewables stood at 21 percent, whereas Trump's “beautiful, clean coal" accounted for only 16 percent of total generation.