Trump Says Taiwan Agreed to Buy 30% of Alaska LNG Gas at Wasilla Rally; Taipei Has Not Confirmed Terms

Since Trump announced a $54 billion South Korean commitment to the Alaska LNG pipeline at the White House on Sept. 30, the project has gained a new headline number from the president but no new signed contract that anyone has published.

At a Republican National Committee rally in Wasilla on Tuesday, Oct. 13, Trump said: "Taiwan has just agreed to buy 30% of the gas coming off the pipeline for the next 20 years. That guarantees a success." Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who appeared at the same event, said Taiwan has committed to investing $4.4 billion in the pipeline's development.

Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs had no immediate comment. Neither did CPC Corp., the state-owned energy company, or the White House when asked for terms.

What Taiwan has actually signed

There is a real document underneath the claim, and it is preliminary. CPC signed a letter of intent with the Alaska Gasline Development Corp. in March 2025 to buy LNG and invest in the project. Alaska's governor said at the time that the letter covered 6 million tonnes a year.

The finished project is designed to export up to 20 million tonnes a year. Six million out of 20 million is 30%. Trump's figure may be a restatement of the 2025 framework rather than a new deal, though neither Taipei nor the developer has said so.

Taiwan's Premier Cho Jung-tai was asked about the claim before an event in Taipei. He said all governments work to secure energy supply and Taiwan is no exception. He did not confirm a 30% purchase or the $4.4 billion. "This is a very long road," Cho said.

The direction of travel is not in dispute. Taiwan officials said in February they would raise U.S. natural gas to about one-third of the island's imported supply this year. Taiwan imports more than 90% of its energy, and its economic affairs ministry projects electricity demand growth of about 2.5% a year through 2035, driven partly by AI.

The South Korea number keeps moving

On Sept. 30, Trump put South Korea's Alaska share at $54 billion, part of a $200 billion package of energy and infrastructure investments under the $350 billion pledge Seoul made in last year's trade deal. At Wasilla he described it as $50 billion "already committed."

Seoul has said its participation has not been finalized and that any U.S. project it funds must stand on commercial merits. Kim Sung-won, who chairs the South Korean parliament's trade committee, told Reuters the business case needs vetting before taxpayers carry the burden. Trump has threatened to charge South Korea more, and to double the charges, if Seoul does not sign soon. He did not say what would be doubled.

Alaska journalist Dermot Cole wrote that the Korean money is not committed and that any Taiwan arrangements are not binding contracts. He cited the absence of any announcement from Taiwan or the developer. Cole is a critic of the president, and his account runs against Lutnick, who told the rally the administration had worked with the Taiwanese government all week and thanked Trump for "the greatest deal in the history of Alaska."

Where the project stands

Glenfarne, the lead developer, owns 75% of the project alongside the state of Alaska. It has made no final investment decision and says the project depends on an overhaul of Alaska's tax structure. It has told the U.S. government it aims to deliver first gas in 2029.

The plan calls for an 807-mile pipeline from the North Slope to Nikiski on the southern coast, carrying about 3.9 billion cubic feet a day. Glenfarne said in March it had agreements covering 13 million tonnes a year from Asian buyers and TotalEnergies. It needs another 3 million tonnes, and it must convert the agreements into binding deals to line up financing. Japan's JERA and Tokyo Gas have signed preliminary deals for a combined 2 million tons a year.

The project has been discussed for roughly 50 years, and doubts about its cost and profitability have followed it throughout.

The Senate race

The pipeline has become a campaign issue. Sen. Dan Sullivan, a Republican seeking a third term, was at the Sept. 30 announcement. He called the project "the most important project in our state, by far." Trump said at the rally that Sullivan helped him get the deal done.

His Democratic challenger, Mary Peltola, opposes the pipeline, according to one account of the race. Polls from earlier this month show her with a narrow lead under Alaska's ranked-choice system.

Trump also claimed at Wasilla that the project would create over 13,000 jobs, up from the 12,000 construction jobs and 1,000 operating positions he cited on Sept. 30. He said it would save the typical Alaska household more than $2,000 a year on energy bills.

Next to watch: whether CPC or Taiwan's economic affairs ministry publishes the terms behind the 30% figure, and whether Glenfarne converts any of its roughly 13 million tonnes of non-binding offtake into the binding contracts it needs to finance construction.

The November midterms will come before any of that is likely to be settled.