South Korea will carefully evaluate joining the Alaska liquefied natural gas project after conducting an on-site inspection, Yonhap News reported Friday, citing the country's Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun.

Ahn's comments came at a press briefing held after US-Korea "2+2" trade consultations in Washington, D.C., on Thursday.

The project aims to build a 1,287-kilometer pipeline and produce 20 million tons of LNG a year for export to Asia. The project is viewed as a potential to lower South Korea's trade surplus with the US. Discussions also included establishing a consultative body with major Asian gas purchasers, the report said.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)