Helium

Overview

Helium is a colorless, odorless and completely unreactive noble gas. After hydrogen it is the second most abundant element in the universe; on Earth it is formed by the radioactive (alpha) decay of elements in the rock. The atmosphere holds about 5 parts per million, too little to extract economically.¹

Helium boils at 4.222 K (−268.928 °C) and is used to cool the superconducting magnets in MRI scanners.¹ Nothing substitutes for it in cryogenic applications that need temperatures below −429 °F.²

The EU classed helium as critical in 2017, dropped it in 2020 after a small fall in its economic importance, and restored it in 2023.³ It is listed in Annex II of the Critical Raw Materials Act.⁴ Helium is not on the US 2025 List of Critical Minerals.⁵

Where it comes from

Almost all helium is recovered from natural gas, which can contain up to 7% helium.¹ Because it is a by-product, helium output depends on gas processing and liquefied natural gas (LNG) operations.

USGS estimates world production at 190 million cubic meters in 2025. The United States sold about 81 million m³ of Grade-A and gaseous helium (a figure that includes some helium extracted in Canada and purified in the United States), Qatar produced about 63 million m³, Russia 18 million m³ and Algeria 11 million m³. Canada, China and Poland produced smaller amounts.² Because these volumes include rounded estimates and some cross-border processing, no share chart is shown here.

New capacity is coming from outside the traditional gas fields. In 2025 six new helium operations started in the United States (three in New Mexico and one each in Colorado, Kansas and Montana), new facilities began operating in Canada and South Africa, and some deposits being explored are not associated with hydrocarbons.²

Supply was severely disrupted in 2026. On 2 March, QatarEnergy halted production at Ras Laffan Industrial City after Iranian attacks, removing roughly one-third of the world's helium supply from the market. Qatar is also home to one of only two plants producing semiconductor-grade helium.⁶ By the end of June, QatarEnergy had partially restarted its Helium2 plant, but observers said a wider recovery depended on LNG exports resuming through the Strait of Hormuz.⁷

The United States has the largest reported reserves, about 8.5 billion m³, followed by Algeria (1.8 billion m³) and Russia (1.7 billion m³); Qatar's are described as large. Outside the United States, identified resources total about 31.3 billion m³, led by Qatar, Algeria and Russia.²

What it is used for

Helium's uses rely on its very low boiling point, low density and inertness. It cools MRI and NMR magnets and particle accelerators, provides an inert atmosphere for making optical fiber and semiconductors and for arc welding, detects leaks, fills balloons and airships, and is mixed with oxygen for deep-sea diving.¹

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Helium-3, a rare isotope produced in the United States from tritium decay, is used mainly in neutron detectors, research and quantum computing. World output was estimated at 40,000 liters a year in 2024 and 2025.²

Grades and forms

Producers first recover crude helium, then purify it to gaseous or Grade-A helium. In 2025, nine US plants produced crude helium, 11 produced gaseous helium and 5 produced Grade-A helium.² QatarEnergy, for example, liquefies helium at Ras Laffan, and delivery from Qatar's container-filling stations to a customer takes about three weeks.⁶

Trade and policy

The United States is a net exporter. In 2025 it exported an estimated 38 million m³ and imported about 8 million m³; its main import sources in 2021–24 were Canada (47%), Qatar (28%), Algeria (10%) and China (5%). Helium enters the United States at a normal-trade-relations duty of 3.7% ad valorem.² The EU's main supplier in the 2023 assessment was Qatar, with 35% of EU sourcing.³

This section is factual background, not legal or trade-compliance advice.

Recycling and substitution

In large-volume applications, helium is seldom recycled in the United States. Some low-volume and liquid boil-off recovery systems are used, and closed-loop recycling systems are becoming more common.²

Substitution is limited. Superconductors, including those for MRI, are being developed to run at higher temperatures using nitrogen instead of helium as a coolant. Hydrogen can replace helium as a lifting gas, argon and hydrogen can replace it in diving, and argon, helium and nitrogen can substitute for one another in welding.²

Sources

1. Helium: element information, properties and uses. Royal Society of Chemistry, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

2. Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Helium and Rare Gases. U.S. Geological Survey, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰

3. Study on the Critical Raw Materials for the EU 2023 – Final Report. European Commission, DG GROW, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩ ↩²

4. Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 (Critical Raw Materials Act). EUR-Lex, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

5. Final 2025 List of Critical Minerals. Federal Register, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

6. Iran war threatens global helium supply. Chemical & Engineering News, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩ ↩²

7. Full restart of Qatar's Helium2 hinges on Strait of Hormuz stability. gasworld, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

8. Council Regulation (EU) 2024/1745 amending Regulation (EU) No 833/2014. EUR-Lex, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

9. BLM completes sale of Federal Helium System. U.S. Bureau of Land Management, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩

10. China Temporarily Bans Helium Exports, Effective Immediately. CIRS Group, accessed 2026-10-03. ↩