Oil isn’t the only casualty of the strait blockade: Helium is running out

While media attention initially focused on the spike in gas prices, the real ticking time bomb for the high-tech economy and scientific research is the loss of helium.

The global energy and technology landscape has been shaken in recent weeks by an unprecedented event: a series of coordinated attacks against Ras Laffan Industrial City in Qatar, the beating heart of global liquefied natural gas (LNG) production and, above all, the production of helium. The explosions, caused by drones and long-range missiles amid the escalating regional conflict, have knocked out the Helium 1, 2 and 3 plants, which account for roughly 30 to 35 percent of the global production of this noble gas.

While media attention initially focused on the spike in gas prices, the real ticking time bomb for the high-tech economy and scientific research is the loss of helium. With estimated damages that will take three to five years to repair, the world is facing the most severe helium shortage in modern history. Helium is more........

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