maybe someone with real knowledge can add, but it appears : Coal power plants generate electricity to a grid connection in the common case; alternative sources of electrical generation have changed the economics in most North America markets in pure monetary terms, away from coal; coal plants are classic industrial infrastructure, they cost a lot of build but then operate in a steady way for a very long time, they sit in one location and never move. If all of that is true, then loosening the Coal Power Plant restrictions now seems like, not economic sense but literally a political gift to the incumbent, wealthy ownership. In some US coal states, the ownership of the coal plant is associated with long term political ties. It almost seems like loosening coal restrictions is a sort of political fiefdom guarantee, not an economic move.