Qatar is working to reinforce its position as one of the world’s leading exporters of helium. It is the second-largest supplier of rare earth element accounting for 32 percent of the global market share. The United States is the world’s largest helium supplier with approximately 55 percent share (in 2017).
Qatar’s helium production facilities are located in Ras Laffan Industrial City, which are operated by Qatargas. The country has been investing heavily to expand its helium production capacity, which is yielding fruitful results.
The production increased by nearly 5.4 percent in 2018 compared to 2017, according to latest available data (Qatar Petroleum’s Annual Report 2018). Qatar Petroleum, the state-owned energy giant, made annual revenue of QR1.23bn in 2018 (by selling about 2 billion cubic feet (bcf) of helium) compared to QR1.14bn in 2017 (from 1.9 bcf).
The year-on-year surge in revenues from helium can be attributed to increase in volumes as well as rise in market prices. The average price charged for Qatari helium also increased to $174 in 2018 from $169 in 2017, according to the QP annual report.
“#DidYouKnow that Qatar is the second largest supplier of helium after the #US? This rare earth element is essential for advanced medical equipment, space exploration and the manufacture of high-speed electronics,” noted the Qatar Embassy in USA in a tweet recently.
Qatar, which is one of the world’s leading exporters of natural gas, is working aggressively to boost the production of helium and retain its market share as the global demand for the inert gas is also growing steadily.
Market studies show that the world demand for helium has increased by 2.7 percent since 2013.
With a projected helium demand growth forecast, Qatar’s Helium 3 Project is expected to contribute toward filling the supply gap that the global helium market might experience in the future.
Helium adds value with multiple uses across medical, scientific and communications; such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); fiber optics and semiconductor manufacturing; metallurgy; breathing atmospheres for deep diving or unique blood gas medical mixtures; lifting for high altitude scientific research balloons, blimps; and other advanced applications.
The Qatar Embassy in Washington shared a report by ‘Stock Market Vista’on ‘Global Helium Market- Industry analysis and Forecast 2018-2026 by Phase, Application, End Use Industry and Region.
The report noted that the growing consumption of helium in the electronics and semiconductors industry and increasing use in healthcare industry drives the market growth.
“Expensive extraction process and stringent government regulations concerning helium use hampers the growth of global helium market. In addition, growing electronics sector, especially in countries like China, Japan and South Korea, is further anticipated to steer growth in the global helium market in the forecast years.” The report also said that liquid helium will gain a significant market share owing to its exponential use in healthcare application.
