Trump Formalizes Alaska LNG Investment: “South Korea to Invest $54 Billion”
- Input
- 2026-10-01 06:08:55
- Updated
- 2026-10-01 06:08:55
At the White House on the 30th (local time), President Trump said, "Today, I am very pleased to announce an energy infrastructure investment that is among the largest in U.S. history," adding, "Under the agreement our administration reached with South Korea, the South Korean government will invest up to $200 billion."
South Korea’s investment targets are the Alaska LNG Project, eight large nuclear power plants in the United States, and a large gas-fired power plant in Texas. According to the White House, $54 billion will be invested in the Alaska LNG Project. The massive project involves building an approximately 807-mile (1,300-kilometer) pipeline from Alaska’s North Slope to Nikiski in the south and connecting it to LNG export facilities.
In his announcement that day, President Trump repeatedly underscored the significance of the Alaska LNG Project. "Politicians have been talking about the Alaska pipeline for 50 years," he said. "Since I was a child, I have heard people say, ‘One day, the Alaska pipeline will be built.’"
He went on to emphasize that "this one project alone will be one of the largest energy projects in U.S. history," saying it would create up to 12,000 construction jobs and 1,000 operating jobs. President Trump claimed that energy costs for Alaska households could also fall by up to $1,500 per year, or as much as $2,200.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick provided more specific details about how the South Korean investment would be used. "South Korea is investing just under $200 billion in U.S. energy infrastructure," Secretary Lutnick said. "The South Korean government is fully funding these projects for the benefit of the United States."
According to Secretary Lutnick, $120 billion will go toward building eight large nuclear power plants in the United States. That amount consists of $100 billion in project costs and a $20 billion contingency reserve. The plants are slated to be built in Ohio, Tennessee, South Carolina and Kentucky.
More than $50 billion will be invested in the Alaska LNG Project, while more than $22 billion will go toward a 6.5-GW gas-fired power plant in Texas, Secretary Lutnick explained. The White House has put the investment in the Alaska LNG Project at $54 billion.
Secretary Lutnick placed particular emphasis on the Alaska project, saying, "It will change Alaska and it will change geopolitics." He said that if gas from Alaska is exported to Asia, all of Southeast Asia would become dependent on the United States for gas and natural resources.
The announcement was also attended by Dan Sullivan, U.S. senator from Alaska; Mike Dunleavy, governor of Alaska; and Nick Begich III, U.S. representative from Alaska.
[email protected] Correspondent Lee Byung-chul Reporter