Helium’s Invisible Crisis: How the Iran War Is Deflating the World’s Supply

Helium — overlooked, unglamorous, and essential — is emerging as one of the Iran war’s most consequential and least-discussed casualties.

The shortage has largely been overlooked because the effects of oil supply constraints have been so acute and immediate. But quietly, a parallel crisis is unfolding — one with consequences that could ripple through hospitals, semiconductor fabs, and consumer electronics for years to come.

A Third of the World’s Supply, Gone

The war in Iran, which began on February 28 when the U.S. and Israel collaborated on a wave of airstrikes, has taken one-third of the world’s helium supply off the market. The mechanism is twofold: Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has halted helium shipments from the Persian Gulf, and Iranian missile strikes have directly damaged the facilities that produce it.

Qatar, which accounts for roughly one-third of the world’s helium supply, stopped producing helium in March following Iranian strikes on two liquid natural gas facilities owned by state-run QatarEnergy. Helium is a byproduct of natural gas processing, and attacks on Qatar’s LNG facilities mean it could take years to rebuild production lines.

Qatar produced approximately 63 million cubic meters of helium in 2025 out of roughly 190 million cubic meters globally, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The damage to its infrastructure is severe. Earlier in March, QatarEnergy told Reuters that the attacks wiped out 17% of the country’s LNG export capacity, and that repairs could take three to five years.

The remaining major producers offer little relief. The United States is the biggest producer, accounting for 81 million cubic meters last year. Qatar, Algeria and Russia are the other major producers, but Russian supplies are banned under U.S. and European Union sanctions.

Prices Surge, Surcharges Arrive

The market has reacted swiftly. Bank of America estimated that spot helium prices have surged as much as 40%, depending on the market, while Phil Kornbluth, president of Kornbluth Helium Consulting, told CNBC that prices were up by 70% to 100% in some cases within a little more than a week.

A major industrial gas supplier has already begun assessing customers a helium surcharge. Force majeure declarations and supply allocations, if they happen, would indicate the helium market is headed for a full global shortage. “The world can’t compensate for the loss of a third of its helium supply,” Kornbluth said.

Industry analysts are calling this “Helium Shortage 5.0.” Unlike previous disruptions, this one combines a production shutdown, a logistics blockade, and an active military conflict with no defined end date. There is no OPEC-style spare capacity mechanism for helium.

Why Helium Is Irreplaceable

Helium isn’t just for party balloons. As a cryogenic liquid, it cools superconducting magnets in spectrometers, cryostats, and imaging devices. Deep-sea divers use it in breathing mixtures because it doesn’t dissolve easily into blood. And Qatar is home to one of only two plants that produce semiconductor-grade helium, which is ionized and used to etch silicon wafers.

For high-tech and medical applications, Gavin Harper, a critical materials research fellow at the University of Birmingham, explains there is no replacement for helium, calling it a “fundamental physical constraint.”

Because helium is highly effective at transferring heat, making it ideal for rapid cooling, it’s essential for manufacturing semiconductors. And the semiconductor industry’s exposure is acute. South Korea sourced nearly 65% of its helium from Qatar in 2025 and produces roughly two-thirds of global memory chips. Its Ministry of Trade has launched a supply exposure investigation across 14 semiconductor materials.

Helium suppliers are already telling their U.S.-based customers, including semiconductor chip and electronics manufacturers, to expect shortages and price hikes. “They are already receiving ‘force majeure’ and allocations letters,” Cliff Cain of Pulsar Helium told CBS News. “Everything from vehicle chips to iPhones will definitely be affected.”

The Long Shadow on AI and Manufacturing

The stakes extend beyond consumer electronics. A global helium shortage will crimp chip manufacturing, which could interfere with building out AI data centers and curtail companies’ investment plans, according to Oxford Economics. “Semiconductor manufacturers have already indicated that they will not be able to meet their 2030 manufacturing goals,” Cain said.

Helium shortages could also limit semiconductor manufacturing, which could, as former deputy director of the National Economic Council Sameera Fazili warned, “affect the supply of nearly every good, from cars to dishwashers.”

Medical imaging faces its own reckoning. Most MRI machines around the world rely on liquid helium, and while researchers have developed machines that can recycle helium or operate without it, those technologies remain far from widespread deployment.

Who Gets What

With supply constrained, the industrial gas distributors — primarily Linde, Air Liquide, and Iwatani — are taking on the role of allocation authorities. Medical uses for helium and semiconductor chip manufacturing will be prioritized as suppliers allocate their resources. Some customers are already being told they’ll only get half their normal supply.

Wall Street is already pricing in the winners. Other Wall Street banks, including Deutsche Bank, Wells Fargo and JPMorgan, all recently pointed to a tightening helium market as a positive catalyst for industrial gas supplier Linde, which is up 15% in 2026 through late March, versus a 3% decline in the S&P 500. Air Products and Chemicals is also 14% higher this year.

A Structural Wakeup Call

Experts stress that the current crisis, while acute, reflects a chronic vulnerability. The crisis triggered by the war on Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is the fifth occasion since 2006 when the world has grappled with a helium supply shortage. Yet each time, the lesson has gone unheeded.

Harper says building a sustainable helium supply is “a long-term play.” It could include decentralizing production, diversifying the supply chain, or aggressively recycling. As he puts it, perhaps the best place for such a critical resource is not inside a mylar birthday balloon.

For now, the world is scrambling. South Korean chipmakers have stockpiled enough reserves to last several months. North America remains relatively insulated for the time being given its domestic production. But the clock is ticking, and the lesson is stark: in a world of interconnected supply chains, even the lightest element on the periodic table can carry enormous geopolitical weight.