A file image of the U.S. President Donald Trump. Photo: Getty Images via AFP
President Donald Trump on Tuesday (February 17, 2026) announced Japan’s planned investments in U.S. energy and critical minerals projects, the first tranche under a bilateral trade pact, ahead of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s Washington visit.
The commitments amount to $36 billion, the U.S. Commerce Department said in a separate statement.
The projects they cover are a natural gas facility in Ohio, a crude oil export facility in the Gulf of Mexico, and a synthetic industrial diamond manufacturing facility, the department added on social media.
“Japan is now officially, and financially, moving forward with the FIRST set of Investments under its $550 BILLION Dollar Commitment to invest in the United States of America,” Mr. Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The U.S. leader did not provide further details on the financing of the projects, or specify which companies would be involved.
But the Commerce Department offered more information, noting that the Ohio facility is expected to generate 9.2 gigawatts of power.
The synthetic industrial diamond manufacturing facility — which Mr. Trump indicated would be in Georgia — will “onshore production 100% of U.S. demand for synthetic diamond grit,” the department added.
It noted that this is “a critical input for advanced industrial and technological production.”
Meanwhile, the crude oil export facility is set to generate $20–$30 billion annually in U.S. crude exports, said the Commerce Department.
Mr. Trump’s Truth Social post initially said Japan’s investment would cover a liquefied natural gas facility.
In July, Tokyo had agreed to invest $550 billion through 2029 “to rebuild and expand core American industries,” according to the White House.
The pledge was made in exchange for reducing threatened U.S. tariffs of 25% to 15% on Japanese imports.
But Japanese trade minister Ryosei Akazawa has said that only one to 2% of the $550 billion would be actual capital.
The rest will be made up of bonds and loans from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and credits guaranteed by the Japanese state.
The clock has been ticking ahead of Ms. Takaichi’s planned White House visit on March 19, and according to media reports, tempers were starting to fray.
The rollout of the trade and economic agreement is likely to be a key item on the agenda for Ms. Takaichi’s expected meeting with Trump.
For now, Mr. Trump touted the progress made by both countries.
“The scale of these projects are so large, and could not be done without one very special word, TARIFFS,” he wrote on social media on Tuesday (February 17, 2026).
Published – February 18, 2026 05:02 am IST
