Korea Ties LNG Investment to Project Viability Amid $50B Pledge

Korea's Minister of Trade, Industry and Resources Kim Jung-kwan stated that the country will only proceed with investing in Alaska's liquefied natural gas (LNG) project if its commercial viability is established. This contradicts the Trump administration's announcement that Korea would invest more than $50 billion in the project.

Kim emphasized that Korea had defended its position reasonably well in negotiations over its $200 billion investment pledge to the United States, securing safeguards against unfair terms, including a delay in shifting profit-sharing toward Washington. The country has also agreed to revise an estimated $120 billion undertaking with Westinghouse to build eight reactors in the US.

The revised agreement would allow Korean nuclear exports to enter the US market for the first time and potentially yield $45 billion over 20 years from a gas-fired power plant in Texas, which is expected to generate a return of at least 15 percent. The project's commercial viability has been questioned by Kim in the past, but his tone has grown more positive in recent months.