Kim Jung-kwan aims to clinch US investment deal this week, vows to stay within $200b cap

Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jung-kwan said Sunday that South Korea aims to conclude follow-up investment negotiations with the United States this week.

Speaking to reporters at Incheon International Airport upon his return from Washington, Kim said he intends to make an attempt at a final deal within the week. "If a final agreement is reached, I'm thinking we should try to make an announcement within that same timeframe," he said.

During his US visit, Kim held last-minute consultations with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and others on the scope, scale and structure of South Korea's planned investments in the United States.

However, Kim was tight-lipped on specific projects. Asked whether details had been finalized for a gas-fired combined-cycle power plant in Texas — widely cited as the top candidate for South Korea's first US investment project — and a follow-on nuclear power plant construction project, Kim said it was "still difficult to speak in specific terms." He gave the same response regarding the Alaska LNG project.

Concerns have recently emerged that the total investment could exceed the $200 billion strategic investment cap agreed upon by the two countries. A growing list of candidate projects has come under discussion, including up to eight large nuclear reactors in the United States, the Texas gas power project and the Alaska LNG development.

Kim said the investment cap would be honored. "The $200 billion total limit and the $20 billion annual limit were set when we originally reached an agreement with the United States," he said. "I do not believe we will exceed those limits."

Kim also reaffirmed that negotiations would continue until a final agreement is signed, despite significant progress. Asked why a deal had not yet been reached given that he had traveled to Washington specifically for final adjustments, Kim acknowledged that "substantial progress has been made on many issues," but added, "Negotiations aren't over until the last signature is put down."