Manchin Ex-Im bill to roll back coal restrictions

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) plans to roll back restrictions on the Export-Import Bank’s financing of overseas coal-fired power plants in a pending reauthorization bill.

The bank revised its environmental procedures in December to prevent any financing for power plants unless they adopt carbon capture technology. Exceptions were provided for the world’s poorest countries, and the revision was in response to administration-wide efforts to combat climate change.

{mosads}Manchin’s bill, which has yet to be released, would block the restriction, according to The Wall Street Journal. 

Manchin’s office said the bill would allow the U.S. to export technologies that would help plants use coal in a more enviromentally friendly way.

“There are seven billion tons of coal being burned outside the U.S. each year. If we are truly committed to cleaning up our global environment, the U.S. should lead the world in clean coal technology and export that technology to the rest of the world,” Manchin told the Journal Wednesday.

A congressional source confirmed to The Hill that the draft bill included language blocking the new guidelines.