Will the Era of the New Green Deal Spell Doom for the Coal Industry?
(Note: companies that could be impacted by the content of this article are listed at the base of the story (desktop version). This article uses third-party references to provide a bullish, bearish and balanced point of view; sources listed in the “Balanced” section)
In the run-up to the 2020 Presidential election, ample discussion has centered on efforts to combat climate change. Democratic candidate Jay Inslee proposed phasing coal out completely over the next 11 years. Another Democratic candidate, Beto O’Rourke, proposed a $5.1 trillion plan to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 by investing in infrastructure, clean power and energy efficiency to combat climate change. While the coal industry’s share of supplying fuel to electric power plants has fallen due to the increased use of natural gas, the emphasis on green energy has increasingly put coal in the crosshairs of new environmental policy proposals.
