EXECUTIVE SUMMARYCoal generation is at a crossroads in the United States, ormore precisely at a “cost crossover.” Due to rapid recentcost declines for wind and solar, the combined fuel,maintenance, and other costs of most existing coal-firedpower plants are now higher than the all-in costs of newwind or solar projects. This report compares the economicsof each coal plant in the U.S. against the expectedeconomics of potential new wind and solar plants nearby,using publicly available data. In 2019, 239 gigawatts (GW) of coal capacity was online inthe U.S. Our research finds that in 2020, 72 percent of thatcapacity, or 166 GW, was either uneconomic compared tolocal wind or solar or slated for retirement within five years. Out of the 235 plants in the U.S. coal fleet, 182 plants, or80 percent, are uneconomic or already retiring
