Reevaluating the "End of the Helium Shortage"

In a recent interview with gasworld, Kornbluth Helium Consulting (KHeC) concluded that the helium shortage has almost ended. However, we believe that this conclusion might be premature given the layers of complexities involved in the helium market. Firstly, the decline in the US BLM's Cliffside plant was a long-anticipated event, with its depletion expected by 2030, indicating a continuous challenge in helium supply. Furthermore, KHeC suggests that semiconductor demand is weakening, which in reality is attributed to demand destruction, and it overlooks the burgeoning need for chips driven by the growth of AI. OpenAI's CEO's has discussed that a US$7 trillion investment is necessary to meet this demand. This suggests that the current slump in semiconductor demand could be a temporary setback. Additionally, the KHeC believes that MRI demand is waning due to new non-helium MRI technologies but this fails to acknowledge that these newer MRI scanners have not significantly impacted overall helium consumption.

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