US and South Korea Report $22.3B Texas Gas Plant Investment

South Korea and the United States have reportedly reached a $22.3 billion agreement for a major gas plant project in Texas under a bilateral trade pact, though Seoul's trade officials maintain that negotiations remain active and final approvals are still pending.

The proposed development centers on a 6.3-gigawatt gas facility located in Encinal, Texas, designed to supply power for artificial intelligence data center electricity demands. According to reports from the Korean media outlet Edaily citing unidentified officials and politicians, the infrastructure project represents Seoul's inaugural U.S. investment tied to the countries' trade agreement signed last year.

Status of Bilateral Trade and Consultations

Under the framework of last year's bilateral trade deal, South Korea pledged a total of $350 billion in U.S. investments. In exchange, Seoul secured favorable U.S. tariff treatment on imports of South Korean manufactured goods and industrial products.

However, South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy issued a statement pushing back against premature disclosures regarding the Texas facility. The ministry emphasized that consultations between Seoul and Washington are ongoing and unfinalized.

"Reports on the Texas gas project were inaccurate, consultations between Seoul and Washington were continuing, and the government would make an announcement after completing negotiations and taking into account procedures such as parliamentary approval," South Korea's Industry Ministry stated.

Scope and Unresolved Nuclear Discussions

The scale of the 6.3-gigawatt Encinal project shows how energy-intensive artificial intelligence infrastructure is reshaping international capital flows. Power requirements for computing clusters have driven developers and sovereign investors to seek direct access to U.S. natural gas reserves.

In addition to clarifying the status of the gas plant talks, South Korea's Industry Ministry addressed separate media speculation regarding energy cooperation. The ministry formally clarified that no decision had been reached regarding the construction of a large-scale nuclear power plant in the United States.

As negotiations continue, any final commitment will require formal legislative review. The South Korean government noted that subsequent announcements regarding both the Texas natural gas infrastructure initiative and broader bilateral energy allocations will follow standard domestic parliamentary procedures once formal terms are locked in.