The National Coal Council met at the White House late last week for the first time since the Trump administration revived it.
Trump’s energy and interior secretaries greeted the roomful of coal industry and utility executives in Washington.
“No coal, no modern world,” said Energy Secretary Chris Wright. “No coal, no lifestyle we have today. It’s just that simple.”
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum thanked the industry.
“Thanks for keeping the lights on on the coldest days of the year,” Burgum said. “You’re making a difference for this country on affordability and on national security and we’re grateful for all of you.”
The coal council includes Kentuckians such as Sam McKown, president of the Kentucky Coal Association, and Joe Craft, president, CEO and director of Alliance Resource Partners, and a prominent Kentucky political donor.
It also includes Tony Campbell, retired president CEO of East Kentucky Power Cooperative, based in Winchester, and Don Gulley, president and CEO of Big Rivers Electric Cooperative, based in Owensboro.
It also includes Bill Fehrman, president, CEO and chairman of American Electric Power, the Ohio-based parent of Kentucky Power. Kentucky Power is seeking a rate increase from the Kentucky Public Service Commission.
The council includes other industry representatives and executives, as well as one from higher education. It does not appear to include anyone representing coal miners, including the United Mine Workers of America.
The Trump administration has taken steps to promote coal, such as delaying the retirement of coal plants in Michigan, Indiana, Colorado and Washington. Federal agencies have also rolled back regulations on coal that were implemented in previous administrations.
However, the Trump administration’s own data show coal generation will decline in the next few years. The U.S. Energy Administration forecasts that coal generation will fall from 17% in 2025 to 15% in 2027. That’s where it was in 2024.
Solar remains the fastest growing kind of power generation nationwide, though coal remains the dominant fuel in Kentucky and West Virginia,
