Trump’s order is the latest step by the U.S. government to boost the fossil fuel industry despite climate change concerns.

US President Donald Trump has ordered the Pentagon to buy coal for power generation, his latest move Increased demand for fossil fuels Due to declining cost competitiveness and climate change concerns.

In an executive order signed on Wednesday, Trump directed the U.S. Department of Defense to enter into long-term procurement agreements with coal-fired power plants and prioritize the “protection and strategic utilization” of “coal-based energy assets.”

Trump’s order did not specify how much energy the Pentagon would buy or under what financial terms.

“You’ve done a lot,” Trump said at a White House event attended by coal industry executives and miners.

“You heat our homes, fuel our factories, and transform natural resources into America’s wealth and dreams,” he said.

Trump also announced that the U.S. Department of Energy will invest $175 million to upgrade six coal-fired power plants in North Carolina, Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky and Virginia.

“The most important people here today are those who work hard to keep America running at full speed – our frontline coal workers,” Trump said.

U.S. coal production has been declining for decades due to growing competition from natural gas and renewable energy sources such as wind, hydropower and solar power.

Production fell by more than half between 2008 and 2023, when it hit 578 million tons, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

By 2023, fossil fuels will account for about 16% of U.S. energy production, trailing natural gas and renewable energy at 43% and 21% respectively.

Trump: ‘Beautiful, clean coal’

A 2023 analysis by Energy Innovation, a California-based nonprofit, found that 99% of coal-fired facilities in the United States cost more to operate than they cost to replace them with renewable alternatives.

Trump advocates reviving “beautiful, clean coal” as critical to boosting domestic manufacturing and achieving U.S. dominance in artificial intelligence, even as the fossil fuel becomes less competitive and produces greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.

Trump, who initiated Washington’s withdrawal from the Paris climate accord and described the scientific consensus on warming temperatures as a “hoax,” declared an “energy emergency” on his first day in office to prevent the closure of aging coal-fired power plants.

Since Trump’s order, the U.S. Department of Energy has forced at least five plants to extend their operations beyond their scheduled decommissioning dates.

Also on Wednesday, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the nation’s largest utility provider, voted to extend the lives of two coal-fired power plants scheduled to close in 2035.

TVA’s vote comes after the utility last month added four Trump-appointed board members, after the U.S. president earlier fired three board members picked by former President Joe Biden.