US EditionHelium Supply Shock Threatens Asian Chipmakers as Economic Slowdown Fears Mount
Attacks on gas infrastructure have halted output from a source that supplies about a third of the world’s helium, threatening science and chipmaking.
- AirGas declared force majeure on helium shipments from March 17 after Qatar halted production following strikes on regional energy infrastructure, disrupting supplies through the Strait of Hormuz.
- Helium is a non-renewable by-product of natural gas production, making output dependent on gas operations. Its extremely low boiling point makes it essential for cooling MRI scanners and displacing oxygen during semiconductor manufacturing.
- Qatar produces about one-third of global helium, putting 30% of supply at risk. AirGas plans to deliver up to half normal volumes with a $13.50 surcharge per hundred cubic feet, prioritizing healthcare over manufacturing.
- The world's largest helium reserves, stored in Amarillo, Texas, offer no safety net after the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013 led to stockpile sales. Industries now face constraints without domestic reserves to manage the squeeze.
- China is building infrastructure to diversify helium supply and explore new reserves. Adaptation strategies include limiting usage to essential applications, though substituting helium's unique physical properties in critical processes remains difficult.
14 Articles
14 Articles
Helium Enters Force Majeure, Asia Prices US Crude vs Soaring Brent, Houthis Enter the Fight
Today’s Digest covers helium force majeure from Qatar disruptions, Turkey’s gold sales, surging China EV demand, Israel-Iran strikes, Houthi missile attacks, U.S. drone ops, Asian crude pricing, Iran shipping blocks, Anthropic Claude leak, brain organoid AI, and Vanden Bossche warnings. Economy AirGas, an Air Liquide company, declared force majeure on helium shipments from March 17, citing Qatar’s halt in LNG production after Iranian strikes on …
For many people, helium is just the gas that makes the balloon fly beautifully at the party. For some industries, it is a critical raw material – for example, for pharmaceutical companies.
Handelsblatt
wiwo.deWith the blockade of the Strait of Hormus, important substances could become scarce for the pharmaceutical industry such as helium. The industry fears consequences for the drug supply should the war last longer.
Iran war chokes Gulf’s helium exports
The war in Iran is choking supplies of helium, vital for technologies from AI chatbots to MRI scanners. The gas is the second-most abundant substance in the universe, but rare on Earth; it is so light that it escapes into space easily, and is only produced here by radioactive decay. Supercooled liquid helium allows superconducting magnets — such as in MRIs — to work, and maintains stable temperatures for chipmaking; it has few natural substitute…
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