Interior Alaska News

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA—U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), today embarks on a trip to Seoul and Tokyo to meet with senior government and business leaders as part of a bipartisan Senate delegation. Sen. Sullivan has been a strong advocate for deepening trilateral cooperation among the three nations, highlighting the central role liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Alaska can play in advancing each nation’s energy security. The Alaska LNG Project will be capable of providing more than three billion cubic feet of low-cost, low-emission natural gas to Alaskans and allied nations around the world each day.

“The Alaska LNG Project provides an important opportunity to meet the long-term energy needs of America’s Indo-Pacific allies, and even more importantly, to meet the in-state energy needs of Alaskans for decades to come,” said Sen. Sullivan. “I am embarking on my fourth trip to Japan and Korea in the past two years to try to spur momentum on this critical energy project, particularly as our allies in Japan and Korea must get off of Russian oil and gas. I have been relentlessly focused on aligning the interests of key stakeholders, investors, producers, engineering firms, and government leaders in the U.S., Japan, and Korea. On the federal side, we have made significant progress—securing all 35 necessary federal permits, including a FERC export license, and a roughly $30 billion federal loan guarantee backing the project, and establishing Alaska LNG Task Forces in our embassies in Tokyo and Seoul. I am hopeful that, given the looming energy needs facing Alaska, that all leaders in our state—private sector, labor, resource development, energy sector, and elected officials—can work together in making sure that the long-term solutions to Alaska’s energy challenges—particularly in Southcentral—come from Alaska’s own rich energy resources and workers, not from importing much more expensive gas from Canada or Mexico.”

In Japan, Sen. Sullivan will be meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida; Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ken Saito; Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa; Defense Minister Minoru Kihara; National Security Advisor Takeo Akiba; and senior executives from the Japan Bank of International Cooperation (JBIC), NEC Corporation, JERA Co., Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC), and INPEX Corp. In South Korea, Sen. Sullivan will be meeting with President Yoon Suk Yeol; Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Ahn Duk-geun; Foreign Affairs Minister Cho Tae-yul; Commander of U.S. Forces Korea General Paul LaCamera; and senior executives from Samsung, Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS), SK Group, Hyundai Motor Group, and LG.

Sen. Sullivan is joined on the Senate delegation visit by Sens. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), and Katie Britt (R-Ala.).

The Alaska LNG Project is projected to create up to 10,000 construction jobs and 1,000 operations jobs.