South Korea and US finalize over $20B gas plant investment in Texas

South Korea and the United States have reached agreement on an approximately $22.3B investment to build a massive gas-fired power plant in Encinal, Texas. The facility, designed with a combined capacity of 6.3 gigawatts, is aimed squarely at the surging electricity demand created by AI data centers. The deal behind the deal This isn’t a standalone energy project. It’s the first concrete deliverable from a much larger bilateral trade framework established in 2025, under which South Korea pledged a staggering $350B in total US investments. That $350B breaks down into $200B earmarked for cash and strategic projects and $150B dedicated to shipbuilding cooperation. In exchange, the US agreed to hold tariffs on Korean goods at 15%. The gas plant investment itself has been a moving target. Earlier projections in July 2026 pegged the figure at $19.8B, with discussions underway to potentially push it as high as $25B. The number appears to have landed at $22.3B, though South Korea’s Ministry of Industry has not yet officially confirmed the final figure. Key figures on the US side include Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, both of whom have been involved in s...