Jack Dini ——Bio and Archives--December 20, 2025

Cover Story | CFP Comments | Reader Friendly | Subscribe | Email Us

Today, after two relentless political and regulatory assaults, coal remains one of the United States most valuable resource, sustaining hundreds of thousands of jobs and keeping electricity affordable and reliable for millions of families.

Coal mining and the industries that depend directly on it employ more than 400,000 Americans. The economic reach of this workforce is immense. When you combine wages, benefits, and tax contributions, America’s coal industry generates more than $300 billion in annual economic impact. (1)

Nearly one-third of America’s electricity still comes from coal, providing the baseload generation that keeps the grid stable when wind and solar can’t meet demand.

Retirement of coal fired power plants in the West has done nothing to reverse global coal demand. Global operating coal power capacity has increased by 13% since 2015. (2)

Despite decades of climate alarmism calling for king coal to be consigned to the ash-heap of history it remains vital, especially in developing countries like China, India, Indonesia and Vietnam. In any credible scenario, the importance of coal to the economic growth aspirations of developing countries is not going to appreciably change over the next few decades.

China depends on coal for over 60% of its power and approved two new plants every week in 2024. China’s coal output in the first six months of 2025 rose 5% on the year.

India celebrated a new record of producing over one billion tons of coal in the 2023-2024 fiscal year, demonstrating its dedication to energy security and self-reliance. India relies on coal for nearly three quarters of its electricity supply. Indonesia, the fourth largest consumer in the world after China,........

© Canada Free Press