Consumers Energy says it will close all of its coal-burning power plants by the year 2025, years ahead of an earlier schedule.
Environmentalists say it's a surprising and highly positive step, but there's still more the utility can do.
Margrethe Kearney is an analyst with the Environmental Law and Policy Center.
She says the announcement is great news.
Coal burning power plants are more expensive to operate than renewable sources of energy - and they spew a lot of harmful chemicals into the air.
On the other hand, Consumers Energy says it will replace the coal by buying five natural gas power plants.
“They're doing kind of a coal for gas swap, where they shut down the coal but they're really just moving to a different fossil fuel.”
Albeit, a fossil fuel that emits about half the greenhouse gas, emissions as coal.