Ameren Corp
AEE
Utilities
2
exclusion reasons
2 themes
This page is part of our public exclusion list — a transparency tool that shows which companies we screen out and why. It is not investment advice, and it is not an accusation. But it is subject to change as our understanding of the facts evolves.
Ameren Corporation operates the Labadie Energy Center, a coal-fired power plant in Missouri that is the largest unlined coal ash pond in the United States. The 647-acre waste pond sits adjacent to the Missouri River, posing a risk of groundwater contamination and potential failure. In 2014, Ameren settled a Clean Water Act lawsuit brought by the Sierra Club and others, agreeing to pay a $1.1 million civil penalty and spend $4 million on environmental projects. The settlement followed findings that the plant had discharged illegal levels of heavy metals, including arsenic and lead, into the river. Despite this, Ameren has continued to store coal combustion residuals in unlined ponds at the site. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has documented elevated levels of contaminants, including boron and sulfate, in groundwater monitoring wells around the Labadie plant, indicating leakage from the ash ponds.
Ameren Corporation operates a generation fleet that remains heavily reliant on coal-fired power. As of its 2024 Sustainability Report, Ameren Missouri's regulated utility subsidiary has approximately 10,000 MW of total electric generation capability, with coal constituting a dominant portion of its fuel mix. The company's integrated resource plan indicates a continued, material dependence on coal generation to serve its 1.2 million electric customers in Missouri. While Ameren has announced long-term decarbonization goals, its current operational footprint and planned transition timeline maintain a significant coal baseload. Reclaim Finance's 2021 Coal Companies Watchlist assessed corporate coal phase-out plans globally and found the vast majority, including those of U.S. utilities, to be partial or misaligned with climate science demands, often due to delayed retirement schedules or conversion plans to other fossil fuels. Ameren's ongoing operation of major coal-fired plants places it within the scope of companies for which coal remains a primary business activity.
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