Many are unaware of the importance of helium as a natural resource, however, this non-renewable gas has a variety of industrial and scientific applications and plays an essential role in a range of industries. As production struggles in the U.S., exploration and production company Total Helium Ltd. (OTCQB:TTLHF) reports working overtime to keep America and the world from running out of helium.

The global suppliers of helium are primarily the USA, Russia, Qatar and Algeria. However, U.S. near-dominance in global production has evaporated in recent years, going from 80% in 2010 to 56% in 2018. This is in part due to the U.S. Federal Helium Reserve selling off its massive supply over the past 25 years. 

The market for helium was worth $4.4 billion in 2022, and is forecasted to grow to $6.4 billion by 2027, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of more than 6% from 2022 to 2027. Demand for the gas continues to increase, linked in part to growth in the technological and service sectors, including semiconductors, fiber optics, aeronautics and medical devices. Hospitals are the largest end-users of helium, using 32% of the global market’s helium in 2021. As well as its technological and medical uses, helium also has a range of industrial applications, such as welding, cryogenics and nuclear power. 

However, the world is in the midst of a shortage of the gas, dubbed “Helium shortage 4.0,” which began early in 2022. It arose in part due to long-term pandemic supply chain failures, the Russian-Ukrainian war, as well as disruptions at various facilities in Russia and Qatar. The shortage, which saw the cost of helium almost double since 2021, has caused major helium providers to ration supplies, and in the summer of 2022 made institutions like Harvard stop some of their scientific research as helium became unobtainable.

Total Helium is a helium exploration, production and storage company. It is positioning itself to be a top supplier of helium in North America, to both strengthen the domestic supply of the gas and reestablish America as a leading player in the global market. It has already built a network of industry relationships and helium-producing sites at various natural gas reservoirs. 

The company recently acquired 50% ownership of a helium field in Holbrook Basin, Arizona, a 27,000-acre, helium-rich project called Pinta South. Total Helium plans to have 20 wells by the second quarter of 2023, with plans to scale up to over 150 wells over time. The project has a helium concentration of 5-8%, significantly higher than the usual gas concentration that ranges from .5% to 3%.

As part of Total Helium’s supply chain solutions, it also announced a joint venture to establish a salt cavern helium storage facility. This sophisticated facility positions Total Helium as vertically integrated, from production to storage. The fact that the Federal Helium Reserve is selling off its helium supply and exiting the helium business underlines the importance of Total Helium’s storage site.