Speaking at the White House on Wednesday, Trump described the announcement as "one of the largest energy infrastructure investments in American history." The investment package stems from a $350bn trade and investment deal the US signed with South Korea last November, under which the US agreed to lower tariffs on certain South Korean imports and South Korea committed $200bn to strategic sectors.
The centrepiece is an Alaska liquefied natural gas (LNG) project consisting of a 1,300km pipeline from the oil-rich North Slope region to a southern export terminal. Senator Dan Sullivan, a Republican facing a tight re-election race against former Congress member Mary Peltola, appeared alongside Trump and estimated the project would create 12,000 construction jobs and deliver low-cost energy "for 50 to a hundred years."
"This is going to be the biggest LNG project in our country. We will be able to get gas, of course, to Alaskans first and to our military, but to our Asian allies," Sullivan said. Alaska is one of several Republican-leaning states where Democrats see an opportunity to flip Senate seats.
The announcement also included South Korean investments in nuclear power plants and a 6-gigawatt gas-fired power plant in Encinal, Texas. That state's Senate race pits Democrat James Talarico against Republican Ken Paxton in an open seat. South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources selected the Texas plant as the first project under its $200bn strategic investment program.
South Korea, the world's third-largest LNG importer, has been a close US ally in the Asia Pacific, though relations have grown more strained in recent months. In August, Trump announced a reduction in joint military exercises with South Korea, partly citing frustration over Seoul's lack of support for the US-Israel war against Iran. The shifting ties have coincided with a decline in public approval among South Koreans, the administration noted.