South Korea Pushes Back on Trump’s $54 Billion Alaska LNG Announcement, Says No Final Decision Made

South Korean officials are pushing back on President Trump’s announcement of a planned $54 billion investment in Alaska’s massive LNG project, saying Seoul has not yet made a final decision on whether to participate or how much money it would commit.

Trump unveiled the proposed investment Wednesday as part of South Korea’s broader $350 billion strategic investment package tied to its 2025 trade agreement with the United States. The president said South Korean investment would support the Alaska LNG project along with eight large-scale nuclear reactors and a major gas-fired power facility in Texas.

South Korea confirmed plans involving $120 billion for eight nuclear reactors and $22.3 billion for the Texas power project. But Seoul took a more cautious position on the Alaska project, saying the proposal must undergo additional review before any investment becomes final.

“No decision has been made on whether to invest or on the size of the investment,” the South Korean government said. Officials said they would first evaluate the Alaska project’s commercial viability and determine whether an investment would comply with South Korea’s required legal procedures.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung echoed those conditions, saying the Alaska LNG project could proceed at the working level only if its commercial viability is confirmed and the necessary South Korean legal requirements are satisfied. He also said the proposed nuclear projects would have to demonstrate commercial viability.

South Korean Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan went further, expressing frustration over how the American announcement was presented. Kim said he contacted Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and complained that announcing specific figures and using definitive language went beyond what Seoul believed had been agreed.

The White House continued to promote the project following Seoul’s comments. White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers described the announcement as historic and said the Alaska project could create as many as 12,000 construction jobs and 1,300 permanent operating jobs while generating billions of dollars in state and local revenue.

The Alaska LNG proposal calls for an approximately 800-mile pipeline carrying natural gas from Alaska’s North Slope to a liquefaction and export facility in Nikiski. The project is estimated to cost between $44.5 billion and $54.5 billion and would primarily target customers in Asian markets.

The project has faced questions for years over financing and commercial viability. Developers have secured preliminary agreements covering about 13 million metric tons of LNG annually, but additional commitments are needed, and many of the existing agreements remain non-binding. First LNG exports are currently targeted for 2031.

The disagreement does not necessarily mean South Korea has rejected the Alaska project. Instead, Seoul’s response makes clear that the $54 billion investment presented by the White House should not yet be considered a finalized commitment. South Korean officials say the project must first clear financial and legal reviews before the country decides whether to move forward.