Mountains of unused coal causing financial headaches for US power sector: Report

American power producers over the past two years have accumulated massive amounts of coal that are now sitting idle at their facilities — creating financial and storage headaches for utilities and coal miners alike, a new analysis has found.

The coal stockpile has reached about 138 million tons, or about the equivalent of the quantity of coal that Appalachia is expected to produce in 2025, according to the report, published on Monday by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

These mountains of coal are not only creating storage problems, but they are also posing financial challenges — piling up to about $6.5 billion in unused inventory, based on an average $47.22 per ton delivery rate, per the analysis.

"No power producer wants that much money idly sitting around," the report authors stated. "But it has become much harder to burn that coal without losing money."

The authors attributed these difficulties to lower natural gas prices, as well as a surge in solar and wind generation, which have made coal-fired electricity much less competitive. In addition, they noted that the occurrence of electricity price spikes during summer heat waves and winter cold snaps have declined.

As such, U.S. coal plants now burn a total of only about 1 million tons per day, half as much as they did in 2015, according to the analysis.

Meanwhile, coal deliveries have been dwindling for more than 15 years — falling from more than 80 million tons a month in 2008 to potentially less than 20 million tons during some months of 2025, per the report.

Given the buildup in coal stockpiles, the authors warned that at a certain point, power providers will buy a lot less of the resource from coal producers.

The analysis also estimated that due to the U.S. energy transition, another 13 gigawatts of the country's remaining 173 gigawatts of coal-fired capacity will retire by 2025.

"The longer that mountain of coal persists, the deeper the delivery cuts and ultimately production cuts will have to be," the authors added.

Topics

CT Scanners Are Being Used on Trading Cards. It’s Causing a ‘Moral Dilemma.’

Buying and selling packs and boxes of trading cards had been a game of chance.
The New York Times - 1d
Klarna Used an AI-generated CEO to Share Financials. Will More Companies Follow?

Ahead of Klarna’s IPO, CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski announced some of the company’s financials — sort of.
Inc. - 4d
Australia's Insignia Financial soars on reports of Bain Capital buyout

Insignia's shares, which hovered around A$3.10 per share throughout the session, soared to A$3.40 in the last 10 minutes of trade settlements, as per LSEG data, propelling the stock to its highest ...
Yahoo Sports - 4d
East Coast storm makes a mess at ski resorts as strong winds cause power outages

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A storm that swept up the East Coast delivered a blow to New England, packing powerful gusts that knocked out power along with a deluge of rain and warming temperatures that ...
Yahoo Sports - 4d
Trump’s return casts a shadow over China’s success in US solar sector

Chinese manufacturers have benefited from Biden-era subsidies — but that may be about to change
Financial Times - 6d
Biden administration bans cancer-causing solvent used in dry cleaning

The Biden administration is banning a cancer-causing substance used in dry cleaning and is also banning most uses of another, similar chemical. The administration's ban is on a chemical known as ...
The Hill - Dec. 9
Christian Pulisic injury causes concern for Milan ahead of UCL match; USMNT star to have MRI, per report

The American was forced to leave Friday's game in the first half due to injury
CBS Sports - Dec. 7
12:30 Report — Trump’s nomination headaches

{beacon} View Online 12:30 REPORT It’s Wednesday. The 2025 House calendar was released this morning. Now you can start planning your year, Hill folks and journalists. Here’s what’s happening ...
The Hill - Dec. 4
Three climbers from the US and Canada missing on New Zealand’s highest mountain

Several climbing-related items which police believe belonged to the trio found, as bad weather will likely delay search efforts until Thursday. Rescue teams looking for three climbers who went ...
The Guardian - Dec. 4