Alaska Governor briefs Trump on Asia Gas Push as Tariffs Bite
Alaska's Governor said that he would brief U.S. president Donald Trump's Administration after returning from Japan in the next week about progress made to secure Asian support for a project to develop natural gas, which has been part of a larger discussion on tariffs and trade.
Governor Mike Dunleavy and the leaders of the state-run Alaska Gasline Development Corporation and Glenfarne Group visited Taiwan, Thailand and Japan to seek investors and long-term purchasers for a Trump-inspired project.
Dunleavy said in an interview with a Japanese newspaper that "buying gas and investing in America will help the conversations happening at the federal and national levels."
The visit of the Alaskan delegation coincided with a renewed pressure on trade from Washington. Trump announced on Wednesday a 25% import tariff for cars and light trucks beginning April 3. This is a direct threat against the auto industries of Japan and South Korea.
Dunleavy, who has met twice with Taiwan's President Lai Ching Te, said that he will return to the United States with a letter from Taiwan committing it to purchase 6 million metric tonnes of LNG annually.
Brendan Duval is the CEO and founder of Glenfarne. He said that Taiwanese people are most interested in geopolitical ties with the United States.
Alaska is planning to ship natural gas from its remote northern region along a 1,300 km pipeline (800 miles) that will cost $44 billion. The gas will then be liquefied, and shipped to East Asia.
Trump, who has been urging allies to purchase U.S. Energy while simultaneously threatening tariffs on trade, asked Japanese Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba to support the Alaskan Plan in February. In a recent speech to Congress, Trump said that Japan and South Korea were interested in working together on a project which he claimed could inject trillions into the U.S. economic system.
Inpex Corp., Japan's largest oil-and-gas explorer, says it is still unconvinced by the project's viability.
The Alaskan delegation met in Tokyo with Japan's Minister for Economy, Trade and Industry, Yojimuto. In Seoul, the delegation had earlier met with South Korean trade minister Ahn Duk Geun.
The detailed project plans including the front-end design are expected to be finished in the third quarter this year. A final investment decision is likely to be made for the pipeline portion of the project by the end 2025. This would allow Asian buyers to commit money to a project which, according to Glenfarne’s Duval can deliver gas at an affordable price.
Duval stated that U.S. investors would provide the majority of the financing, and any equity provided by Japan or other Asian buyers would likely be linked to the offtake at the liquefaction facility, which will prepare the natural gas for export.
He said that "some leadership from Japan is clearly going to be useful."
(source: Reuters)
