Dominic Ellis reviews how the once-constrained helium market is adjusting to plentiful supply and Christian Anneseley shines the spotlight on new helium producers
It’s been a case of ‘all change’ in helium. After the 4.0 challenges throughout 2022-23, the market has now turned around with plentiful supply. The shortage began to ease in Q2 2023 due to weak demand from the electronics market and by the end of late 2023, the shortage was over.
That sense of unpredictability persists today however, with oversupply evident in some markets – such as China, fuelled by Russian imports – and the global supply chain remains fragile, exacerbated by ongoing geopolitical tensions. Semiconductor manufacturing, which is now the biggest application – and judging by the gasworld news pages, an area brimming with activity – is recovering from the slump in 2023, but still not at the 2022 level.
... to continue reading you must be subscribed