South Korea is poised to invest around $54 billion to support the construction of a liquefied natural gas pipeline stretching the entire length of Alaska, marking a significant win ahead of the midterm elections for President Donald Trump, who has promised to help the state capitalize on its natural resources.
The announcement is also a boost to Alaska’s Republican statewide officeholders, particularly Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK), who has traveled to Asia to sell allies on the idea of purchasing Alaskan gas. Sullivan is locked in a tight reelection race that could determine control of the Senate.
The 800-mile pipeline is intended to start in Prudhoe Bay, along the Arctic Ocean, where the existing Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, also around 800 miles long, begins. The project will also include the construction of a liquefaction facility to cool and condense the gas for exporting.
The pipeline would make it easier for the U.S. to ship LNG to partners across the Pacific, helping achieve Trump’s goal of increasing exports of U.S. energy products.
South Korea’s backing of the pipeline was expected to be announced on Wednesday afternoon from the White House, as part of the country’s plans to invest about $200 billion in the U.S., Bloomberg reported.
Alaskan officials have said the project could be operational by 2030 or 2031.
The project has hit several key milestones, including the entire federal permitting process for its construction. The Trump administration’s Permitting Council announced in December that it had finished the 10-year permitting review for the project.
The pipeline has long been considered a risky project, due to its high capital costs and the tough, icy terrain of Alaska. It has also been criticized by environmentalists, who seek to curb fossil fuel development in the state.
The Alaskan LNG project is expected to cost at least $44 billion and possibly more than $54 billion. For comparison, the first phase of the Keystone Pipeline, which stretches more than 2,000 miles from Alberta, Canada, to Nebraska, cost roughly $5.2 billion to build.
The project is being developed by 8 Star Alaska, which is 75% owned by energy developer Glenfarne and 25% owned by the state of Alaska.
Alaskan officials first began courting South Korean investors for the LNG pipeline last year, when Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R-AK) traveled to Seoul for a two-day visit in March 2025.
While there, Dunleavy met with several South Korean officials, including acting President Han Duck-soo, Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun, and representatives from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATON COMPLETES PERMITTING FOR ALASKA LNG PIPELINE
Besides South Korea, Alaska is also looking to Japan, Thailand, and Taiwan to fund the pipeline’s construction.
While project developers have signed agreements with some buyers to purchase LNG exported via the pipeline, a final investment decision had not been made as of September.
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[ H/T Washington Examiner ]
