WASHINGTON — The future of an Alaska liquefied natural gas pipeline is uncertain after South Korean officials said key conditions still need to be satisfied, just one day after President Trump announced a $54 billion investment from Seoul.
South Korea’s interior ministry said no decision had been made on either investing in the project or determining the size of any investment. The ministry did not rule out interest in the proposed 807-mile pipeline, which would carry natural gas from Alaska’s North Slope to markets in Asia.
Trump said South Korean funds would support construction of eight large-scale nuclear power plants, a six-gigawatt power generation facility in Texas and the Alaska pipeline. At an event attended by Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, the president described the pipeline as a “huge” deal for the state.
The White House said the investment was included in $350 billion in U.S. investments pledged by Seoul under a trade agreement reached in July 2025.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, however, said the pipeline would move forward only if several requirements were met.
“Among the US investment projects announced by the United States, the Alaska LNG project will proceed to working level under the preconditions that 1) its commercial viability is confirmed and 2) it complies with the legal procedures of the Republic of Korea,” Lee wrote in a post on X.
South Korea’s Industry Minister Kim Jung Kwan also criticized the U.S. announcement, saying it overstated the agreement between the two countries.
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“Putting out figures, or using definitive language, goes far beyond what was agreed,” he told reporters. Kim said he had spoken with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to express his dismay.
White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers did not address Seoul’s objections, instead calling the joint announcement “historic for the great state of Alaska, the United States, and the Republic of Korea.”
“The President and Alaskans look forward to the construction and completion of this long-anticipated project that will create 12,000 construction jobs and 1,300 permanent operation jobs in the state, generate $25 billion in state and local revenue, and provide $10 billion in Alaska energy savings,” Rogers said.
Wednesday’s announcement was among a series of manufacturing and job initiatives the White House planned to highlight before the Nov. 3 midterm election, as it seeks to bolster Republican candidates.
Sullivan, who faces a difficult reelection campaign against former Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola, has strongly backed the pipeline. His seat is viewed as essential to Republicans’ effort to retain control of the Senate after Trump carried Alaska by double digits in the 2024 election.
Trump called the project “a gigantic win for the people of Alaska” and said it could “create up to 12,000 construction jobs immediately.”
“In our trade agreement with South Korea, they have to invest hundreds of billions of dollars, and for doing that, I reduced their tariffs to 15%. But they paid to get them reduced, and part of that money is going into this project,” the president said.
Experts estimate that the pipeline would take at least five years to begin operating after construction starts.