South Korea nears U.S. energy deal potentially worth more than $100 billion

Nuclear and gas projects would support artificial-intelligence data centers

South Korea is nearing the announcement of U.S. energy investments potentially worth more than $100 billion to support America’s artificial-intelligence buildout, according to people familiar with the matter. The two countries are close to finalizing two deals that could be announced as early as next week, the people said.

One proposed project would finance construction of up to eight nuclear power plants in the United States, while the other would support a natural-gas power plant in Texas valued at roughly $20 billion. The gas plant would power artificial-intelligence data centers, and the nuclear plants could provide energy for data-center expansion, according to people familiar with the matter.

The nuclear investment would reach into the tens of billions of dollars and could possibly surpass $100 billion, the people said. The precise construction schedule and reactor locations have not been finalized, and the investment details and announcement timeline could still change as talks continue.

If the deals proceed as planned, South Korea is prepared to make an initial seed payment of more than $2 billion before the end of the month, some of the people said. The investments are expected to unfold over a number of years, with South Korea’s outlays capped at $20 billion in any given year under the two countries’ agreement.

The South Korean government this year created a state-run corporation to evaluate potential U.S. investments for commercial viability. A bilateral investment committee then reviews the projects, which would be financed by South Korean state funds, and makes recommendations to Trump.

The White House declined to comment. South Korea’s trade, industry and resources ministry said no decisions had been made regarding U.S. investments.

The proposed projects would implement part of a trade pact Trump and Lee reached last October. The United States lowered most tariffs on South Korean goods from 25% to 15%, including tariffs affecting South Korea’s automobile sector. In exchange, South Korea pledged $350 billion in U.S. investments and another $100 billion for American energy purchases.

No projects had emerged from the pact before the current negotiations, drawing criticism from U.S. officials, including Trump. In January, Trump threatened to revive the 25% tariffs after months of inaction by South Korea’s legislature on approving the agreement. South Korean lawmakers approved the pact in March.

The South Korea agreement was among more than a dozen U.S. trade deals reached last year. Trading partners including South Korea, the European Union and Japan agreed to combinations of trade concessions, state-backed investment and market access in exchange for lower U.S. tariffs.

Of South Korea’s $350 billion investment pledge, about $150 billion is earmarked for U.S. shipbuilding. At the recent Group of Seven summit in France, Trump asked Lee whether South Korea could help quickly build 10 U.S. warships.

The remaining $200 billion could go to strategic industries including semiconductors, nuclear energy and biopharmaceuticals. South Korean officials have said potential nuclear-energy investments could help the United States create a domestic supply chain to meet rising power needs and foster an export market for reactors.

The proposed reactors would likely be built on land owned by the U.S. government. The first reactors would use the AP1000 design from American firm Westinghouse Electric, some of the people said. The United States has two AP1000 reactors.

The two sides have also discussed using the APR1400 design from South Korean company Kepco for at least some of the reactors, the people said. Both the AP1000 and APR1400 designs are large enough to power a city.

Kepco said it was unable to comment because discussions between the United States and South Korea were continuing. Westinghouse did not have an immediate comment.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump “has been eager to jump-start construction” of large and small reactors. About one-fifth of U.S. electricity comes from nuclear power, though reactor construction has slowed dramatically in recent decades. The U.S. government has made an $80 billion federal push for new Westinghouse reactors, with some funds coming from the trade deal with Japan.