Coal Cost Crossover 3.0

A fact sheet analyzing 210 U.S. coal plants, finding that 99% are more expensive to operate than replacing them with new wind or solar. It highlights the potential for $589 billion in investment in energy communities and the feasibility of integrating battery storage to maintain grid reliability.

• Based on 2021 costs for 210 coal plants (220 GW capacity), 99% of these plants (209 out of 210) are more expensive to operate than replacing their generation capacity with new solar or wind. For more than 75% of existing U.S. coal plants, new wind or solar is at least 30% cheaper than current operations.
• Replacing 204 coal plants with local clean energy could generate up to $589 billion in new investment in energy communities. Local solar replacement is cheaper than existing coal for 199 of the 210 plants, while local wind is cheaper for 104 plants; 89 plants find both options cheaper than coal.
• The potential savings from switching from coal to local solar could fund 137 GW of four-hour battery capacity across the studied fleet, representing over 60% of the total capacity of the 210 plants. For over one-third of these plants, 80% or more of the capacity can be replaced by a combination of local solar and four-hour batteries at a cost lower than operating the coal plant.
• The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) accelerates the 'cost crossover' by expanding investment and production tax credits and providing loan guarantees to refinance fossil fuel resources and reinvest in clean energy infrastructure.

APA

Energy Innovation (n.d.). Coal Cost Crossover 3.0. https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/Coal-Cost-Crossover-3.0-One-Pager.pdf

Chicago

Energy Innovation. Coal Cost Crossover 3.0. n.d. https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/Coal-Cost-Crossover-3.0-One-Pager.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Energy Innovation |title=Coal Cost Crossover 3.0 |url=https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/Coal-Cost-Crossover-3.0-One-Pager.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{energyinnovationndcoal, author = {{Energy Innovation}}, title = {{Coal Cost Crossover 3.0}}, institution = {Energy Innovation}, url = {https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/Coal-Cost-Crossover-3.0-One-Pager.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }