The US Department of Energy (DOE) has announced a $625 million funding package to support the retrofitting and recommissioning of coal-fired power plants.

The DOE positioned the funding as an “investment” and did not immediately respond to questions regarding the funding mechanisms, such as whether it would be available as loans or grants. Energy demand from the data center sector was cited as a major reason behind the move.

“Beautiful, clean coal will be essential to powering America’s reindustrialization and winning the AI race,” said Energy Secretary Chris Wright. “These funds will help keep our nation’s coal plants operating and will be vital to keeping electricity prices low and the lights on without interruption. Coal built the greatest industrial engine the world has ever known, and with President Trump’s leadership, it will help do so again.”

The funding will include $350m for recommissioning or modernizing coal power units, $175m for coal power projects that can provide direct benefits to energy affordability and reliability within rural communities, $50m for wastewater management systems which extend the service life reduce operational costs and enhance commercial byproduct recovery at coal plants, $25m for dual-firing retrofits that enable coal plants to seamlessly switch between fuels, and $25m for the development and testing of natural gas cofiring systems.

Currently, the US has approximately 190GW of coal-fired capacity operational; however, several plants have been slated for retirement over the next few years.

The funding follows a recent statement by Wright that the Trump administration expects the majority of the country’s coal-fired power plants to delay retirement to help meet energy demand from the AI data center sector.

The DOE has already used emergency powers to mandate utilities to extend the life of coal plants. In August, Wright enacted emergency powers directing Consumers Energy and the Midwest grid operator to keep the J.H. Campbell coal-fired power plant in West Olive, Michigan, running through November. Wright had already ordered the plant to continue operating in May, using an almost century-old law to enforce the ruling.

The Trump administration has been particularly pro-coal since taking office at the start of the year. In April, President Trump signed a series of executive orders to “reinvigorate” the country’s coal sector to meet the surging energy demand of AI data centers.

The orders included edicts to “remove federal regulatory barriers that undermine coal production, encouraging the utilization of coal to meet growing domestic energy demands, increasing American coal exports, and ensuring that Federal policy does not discriminate against coal production or coal-fired electricity generation.”