"Launching a Project to Export Natural Gas to Asia"
President Donald Trump of the United States stated that, in relation to the Alaska liquefied natural gas (LNG) pipeline project, "By reaching (trade) agreements with Korea and Japan, we have secured an unprecedented level of funding."
During a White House briefing on the 20th (local time), while discussing the economic achievements of his second administration over the past year, President Trump announced, "We have launched the Alaska pipeline project to export natural gas to Asia," and made the above remarks.
Previously, through trade agreements with the United States, Korea and Japan each agreed to invest 350 billion dollars and 550 billion dollars respectively in the United States, and both countries lowered their mutual tariffs from 25% to 15% as a condition of these investments.
According to the "Memorandum of Understanding on Strategic Investment between Korea and the United States" signed by the two governments in November last year, of the 350 billion dollars in investment from Korea, 150 billion dollars is allocated to the shipbuilding sector. The remaining 200 billion dollars in investments will be determined by the President of the United States based on recommendations from the Investment Committee, which is chaired by the Secretary of Commerce. The Investment Committee is required to consult in advance with the Consultative Committee, chaired by the Korean Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, and only recommend commercially reasonable investments to the President.
Specifically, the 200 billion dollar investment targets sectors such as shipbuilding, energy, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, critical minerals, and artificial intelligence and quantum computing, all of which are intended to advance the economic and national security interests of both countries. The Alaska natural gas project is one of President Trump’s key policy initiatives, and the possibility of Korean and Japanese investment has been frequently mentioned during the Trump administration.
Howard Lutnick, the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, stated on X (formerly Twitter) in October last year that the 200 billion dollar investment from Korea would include the Alaska natural gas pipeline, energy infrastructure, critical minerals, advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing.
The Alaska LNG development project is regarded as a project receiving special attention from President Trump. The main plan involves extracting natural gas from the North Slope region of Alaska, an Arctic permafrost area, transporting it via a newly constructed pipeline of approximately 1,300 kilometers to Nikiski, an ice-free port near Anchorage, liquefying it there, and then supplying it to consumer markets. The initial project cost for installing the pipeline and related infrastructure is estimated at about 45 billion dollars. For the project to succeed, long-term purchase commitments from key LNG consumer countries such as Japan, Korea, and Taiwan are considered necessary.
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