November 11, 2025 - A legal fight over a proposed export terminal in deep-blue California could decide the fate of President Donald Trump’s push to revive coal across the West.

Coal miners from Utah to the Powder River Basin have long pined for ports along the Pacific coast to ship land-locked fossil fuels overseas. But plans for at least eight export terminals have crumbled over the years in the face of financial hurdles, legal challenges, and uproar among residents and health advocates.

Now, the industry — fueled by Trump’s embrace of coal — is pinning its export dreams on a scaled-back plan in the San Francisco Bay, where developers are fighting the city of Oakland to build an export terminal on the site of a decommissioned Army base. While less ambitious than past proposals, boosters insist the project is advancing and that there’s demand in overseas markets for U.S. coal.

“Legally, Oakland has lost all of its lawsuits against the developer, and the developer is moving forward with building [the terminal],” said Emily Arthun, CEO of American Coal Council. “You go where the business is.”