$200 Billion South Korean Investment Package Includes Massive Energy Projects for US

US President Donald Trump has announced that South Korea will invest $200 billion in various American energy infrastructure projects. The largest of these investments is for a 6,472-megawatt natural gas power facility in Encinal, Texas, which will supply electricity to co-located data centers and is expected to begin commercial operations by 2029.

The project, led by developer Related Companies and US power company NextEra Energy, includes $22.3 billion from the South Korean investment package. Trump claims this will create tens of thousands of American jobs and turn South Korea's commitments into 'huge construction projects' with new manufacturing and great jobs for American workers.

The investment also includes $120 billion allocated to plans for eight large-scale nuclear reactors in the US, with $100 billion earmarked for construction costs and $20 billion for contingency reserves. The joint statement between the two countries says they will seek to expand Korean companies' participation in the Texas project across equipment supply, engineering and construction, as well as long-term operations and maintenance.

The Alaska LNG project, which would transport natural gas from fields on Alaska's North Slope to the southern part of the state for export to markets including Asia, is still pending. The joint statement says South Korea's participation in this project would be contingent on 'commercial reasonableness' with no details on allocations toward the project.

Trump has stated that the countries have agreed to work on the Alaska LNG project, pegging its value at $50 billion. However, Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan described it last year as a 'high-risk' and said participation would be difficult unless it could generate sufficient cash flow, according to Yonhap News.