Despite the Trump administration’s efforts to boost the coal industry, coal is forecast to generate less electricity this year than last.
The U.S. Department of Energy forecasts a decline in coal generation of 7% this year as renewables, especially solar, gain ground.
It also forecasts the retirement of 4% of U.S. coal generation. The Trump administration has been trying to stop coal plants from shutting down.
Coal plants in Michigan, Indiana, Colorado and Washington state have been ordered to stay on the grid for longer than planned.
Federal officials announced in Louisville last month the rollback of power plant emissions rules.
The Energy Department also approved a federal grant for a pollution control project on a coal plant in Carroll County aimed at extending its operations.
Still, coal is expected to generate 16% of U.S. electricity this year, falling to 15% next year.
Solar, meanwhile, is expected to increase to 8% of generation this year and 9% next year.
Solar and wind combined are expected to account for 19% this year and 21% next year.
It’s been a decade since natural gas displaced coal as the dominant source of fuel for electricity nationwide.
Kentucky is an outlier, with 67% of its electricity still generated by coal.
Coal production and employment in the state, meanwhile, have declined.
Coal generation has become more expensive than other forms of electricity, and electricity customers in Kentucky and other states have been paying the cost.
Customers in Kentucky and other states are also on the hook for the future cost of maintaining coal generation.
Kentucky regulators have recently approved rate increases for electricity customers.
