GE To Exit Coal Power Business Amid Focus On Renewable Energy

General Electric Company GE shares are tumbling Monday, partly dragged by an announcement from the company regarding plans to exit the coal power business that supplies turbines and generators to coal plants.

What Happened: GE said it plans to exit the new build coal power market as it intends to focus on its core renewable energy and power energy businesses. The exit is likely to include divestitures, site closings, job impacts and appropriate considerations for publicly-held subsidiaries, the company said.

The Steam Power business will work with customers on existing obligations and will continue to deliver turbine islands for the nuclear market.

"With the continued transformation of GE, we are focused on power generation businesses that have attractive economics and a growth trajectory," said Russell Stokes, GE SVP and President & CEO of GE Power Portfolio.

Why It's Important: With the accent currently on renewable energy sources as companies strive to reduce their carbon footprint, coal has gradually lost its luster.

GE, which bet big on coal with its $13.5 billion acquisition of Alstom's power and grid business in 2015, has seen the fortunes of the coal power business suffer. This forced the company to lay off workers, write down assets and slash dividends at the unit.

GE shares were sliding 9% to $6.25 at the time of publicaion.

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