DTE Energy Co
DTE
Utilities
3
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.
DTE Energy operates a fleet of coal-fired power plants that historically constituted its primary generation source. As of recent reporting, coal still accounted for approximately 60% of its electricity generation mix. The company's subsidiary, Midwest Energy Resources Company, is a significant coal logistics operation that sources, blends, and transports western coal via rail, vessel, and truck for domestic and international customers.
In February 2026, a U.S. District Court ordered DTE and its subsidiary, EES Coke Battery, to pay a $100 million penalty for Clean Air Act violations at a coke-making facility in Michigan. The court found emissions from the facility caused asthma attacks, heart attacks, strokes, and increased blood pressure in the surrounding community. The ruling detailed that DTE Energy Company controlled the subsidiary's cash and all environmental expenditures, establishing direct liability. This penalty is among the largest ever imposed for stationary source air violations.
While DTE Energy publicly states it is pursuing a transformation to lower its use of coal, its generation fleet remains heavily coal-dependent, and it continues to operate a material coal transportation and trading business. The company has not announced a phase-out date for its remaining coal plants.
DTE Energy operates a significant fossil fuel-based generation fleet. As of its most recent integrated resource plan, approximately 75% of its electricity generation comes from coal and natural gas. The company's primary utility subsidiary, DTE Electric, serves 2.3 million customers in Michigan with this generation mix.
In February 2026, a U.S. federal court ordered DTE Energy and its subsidiary, EES Coke Battery, to pay approximately $100 million for violations of the Clean Air Act at a coke battery facility on Zug Island. The court found the companies saved an estimated $70 million by failing to install required pollution controls, resulting in excessive sulfur dioxide emissions. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had sought a $140 million civil penalty, which DTE's lawyers argued would effectively force a shutdown of the Zug Island operation. The ruling underscores a pattern of regulatory non-compliance within DTE's fossil fuel operations.
DTE Energy operates the EES Coke Battery facility on Zug Island in River Rouge, Michigan, a coke oven plant that converts coal into metallurgical coke for steel production. In August 2025, a U.S. District Court found the facility in violation of the Clean Air Act. Following a two-week trial in September, the court determined that emissions from the plant caused documented harm to the surrounding community, including asthma attacks, heart attacks, strokes, and increased blood pressure. The court ordered DTE Energy to pay a $100 million civil pollution penalty.
The court established that DTE Energy Company controlled EES Coke's cash and capital expenditures, including all environmental spending, while the subsidiary itself had no independent financial ability to fund compliance. This structure made DTE directly responsible for the persistent, excessive air pollution. The $100 million penalty is among the largest ever imposed for Clean Air Act violations at a single facility, reflecting the severity of the environmental damage and public health impact caused by the operation.
Research Sources
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