Doug Burgum discusses coal energy after Trump’s executive order, making it a metal

Interior Minister Doug Burgoum discussed the coal industry and the last President Donald Trump ordered to help raise her production in an interview with Fox Business Kelly Saberi Friday.

The president signed an executive order earlier this week, which issued instructions to the National Council for Energy’s Energy to appoint coal as “minerals” in light of another procedure that sought to “enhance US mineral production, simplify allowing and enhance national security,” according to the White House.

He included other measures, including one of the instructions of Borgum to “recognize the regulatory materials of the horror” that stopped leasing coal on federal lands and one request agencies “to determine coal resources on federal lands”, get rid of barriers that prevent mining and make coal rental on federal territory priority.

Trump appointed coal as metal: What does this mean for the industry?

“Coal is incredibly important for our economy at a very essential level,” Burgum told SABERI. “Coal is not used in a thermal way Electricity productionAnd that we need almost everything, but certainly, at the present time, we need to reduce the price of consumers throughout the country because the electricity prices have risen under Biden management. We have to go down again by getting more offer. “

About 16 % of America’s electricity generation came from coal in 2024, according to short -term power expectations that the US Energy Information Administration (EI) was issued on Thursday.

The report said that natural gas provided 42 % of the American force last year. Meanwhile, renewable and nuclear energy sources made up 23 % and 19 %, respectively.

Almost 41 % of global energy came from clean energy last year

Burgum also said that coal was important in the American competition With China On artificial intelligence (AI).

“With the battle of artificial intelligence that it stands with China, in fact, Amnesty International Arm artificial intelligenceHe said: “Electricity is worth more than any point in history because you can eat kilowners of electricity and then manufacture intelligence with it, so the demand rises. We need more. Of course, coal is one of these basic levels. “

The Minister of the Interior spoke to SABERI while visiting Metallurgical Mining Warrior in Alabama. Mineral charcoal is used to make steel.

China is a major coal product, but it does not issue it, according to SABRARAI. I reported Trump’s executive order “directly affects” the “warrior” because without mining on federal lands, they will lose hundreds of thousands (in) coal that will simply go. “

“Met Coal has obtained all the characteristics that should be necessary for us to make steel.” As you know, President Trump is repeating Steel In the United States, the customs tariffs are placed on those who might throw steel in the United States, and support our US steel companies here. “

Trump re -imposed a 25 % tariff on steel imports in February, one of the fees imposed by the president on goods imported from foreign countries since he took office.

“The product that has been made here is harvested here and the laborers here are necessary to re -make our steel,” Burgum told SABERI.

Tell Borgum SABERI companies wanting to build manufacturing factories and data centers in the United States need steel to do so.

“If you want to make steel in the United States, you need Met charcoal, and they produce it here.”

Burgoum said that coal “needs to become dedicated to the list of critical minerals because, in this battle in this battle, the country is bound by some minerals from the United States

The American public “owns 700 million acres of the surface”, and the government “finds that some rare ground minerals restricting China from the United States” in coal, according to the Minister of Interior.

“So, coal is a resource that is not used only for electricity, but it is extremely necessary to use coal in the steel industry,” he said. “But in this charcoal resource, there are decisive minerals that we need for defense and technology, and therefore it is a triple US victory to return to coal.”

Get Fox Business on the Go by clicking here

He also said that “part of the battle” with China on artificial intelligence “makes sure that, as a country, we have enough electricity to win the arms race intelligence, but also enough to make sure that we have electricity for all these manufacturing factories that will come. We have enough to make sure that we provide them so that prices can survive or decrease, because electricity prices have continued through the ceiling.”

He said that coal would play a role in that.

In December, it is expected that the demand for electricity in the United States will jump 15.8 % by 2029, with data, manufacturing and electricity centers, major contributing to this.

American coal production reached 512.1 million short tons in 2024, according to data for the initial environmental impact.

In the annual charcoal report issued on Tuesday, the environmental impact evaluation said that the United States produced “less than half of” coal in 2023 compared to 2008.

Low coal production links to “increased mining costs, increasingly strict environmental regulations, and competition from other sources to generate electrical energy” such as natural gas and renewable energy sources.

The United States is expected to produce approximately 490 million short coal tons in 2025, according to an environmental impact assessment.

Kelly Saberi contributed to this report