U.S. President Donald Trump said South Korea will invest up to $200 billion in U.S. energy infrastructure. He said the package includes nuclear power projects, a natural gas power plant in Texas and possible participation in the Alaska LNG project, which Trump valued at $50 billion.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, however, said Seoul’s involvement in Alaska LNG has not been finalized. He said participation depends on the project’s financial viability and compliance with legal requirements. Lee also said investments in nuclear plants would be reviewed case by case based on each facility’s commercial viability.
The U.S.-South Korea joint statement likewise said work on Alaska LNG is contingent on “commercial reasonableness.” According to Yonhap, the project aims to move natural gas about 1,300 kilometers from fields on Alaska’s North Slope to the southern part of the state, where it would be liquefied for export, including to Asia. The project has long faced questions over its economics because of high upfront costs.
Of the overall package, $22.3 billion is allocated to a 6,472-megawatt natural gas power facility in Encinal, Texas, which would supply electricity to co-located data centers. The project will be led by Related Cos. and NextEra Energy. The first phase is expected to begin commercial operations in 2029, with the full facility coming online in stages by 2032.
Another $120 billion has been allocated to plans for eight large-scale nuclear reactors in the U.S. Of that amount, $100 billion is earmarked for construction costs and $20 billion for contingency reserves. The agreement was signed by both governments as well as Westinghouse Electric, Korea Electric Power Corp. and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power.
