Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will visit the Philadelphia Mint Wednesday to commemorate the last production of the penny in the United States.

Treasurer Brandon Beach nine months after President Donald Trump called to halt production on the one-cent coin. Trump explained that the decision was part of an effort to “rip the waste out of our great nation’s budget, even if it’s a penny at a time.”

The Philadelphia Mint is a notable location to host Bessent and Beach, as it is the nation’s first Mint. It produced the first U.S. copper pennies. In 1793, the Philadelphia Mint made and delivered 11,178 pennies. In 2017, when the Mint reached its 225th anniversary, the pennies that year were struck with an additional “P” for Philadelphia.

A single penny made up of 2.5% copper and Zinc costs 3.69 cents to make. Before 1857, the Mint produced the coin completely out of copper. According to the U.S. Mint’s fiscal 2024 report, last year alone, the penny’s production resulted in a loss of $85 million for the Mint.

While the penny is winding down production, the coin will still hold value in the U.S. economy. The Treasury is currently selling a set of uncirculated coins from 2025, which includes a penny on its website. Limited edition collector’s editions of pennies are also anticipated in the future. 

During fiscal 2024, the Treasury’s coin circulation was 57% pennies. As a result, the Treasury will save $56 million a year by eliminating its production.  

Nickels could be next on the Treasury’s chopping block as they cost over 13.78 cents each to make. Bessent has floated the idea of changing a nickel’s composition “so that a nickel is worth a nickel.” Fiscal 2024 marked the 19th consecutive fiscal year that nickels cost more to make than they were worth.

The Washington Examiner has reached out to the Treasury for comment.