China Bans Helium Exports as Global Supplies Tighten

Beijing gave no end date or exemptions for the ban on a gas used in chips, MRI systems, aerospace, and research.

QatarEnergy's liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facilities in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar, on March 2, 2026. Stringer/File Photo /Reuters

China imposed an immediate prohibition on helium exports on July 10, removing another source from a global market already tightened by production losses caused by Iran’s March attacks on Qatar’s Ras Laffan energy complex.

The United States received 5 percent of its imported helium from China on average from 2021 through 2024, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Canada supplied 47 percent, Qatar 28 percent, and Algeria 10 percent.

U.S. general imports of helium from China totaled 328,000 cubic meters (429,008 cubic yards) in 2025, valued at about $3.4 million, according to a Census Bureau report generated through USA Trade Online for customs code 2804290010.

The United States imported another 137,000 cubic meters (179,189 cubic yards) from China from January through May 2026, valued at about $2.7 million. May alone accounted for 58,000 cubic meters (75,861 cubic yards) valued at nearly $1.16 million, the latest month available in the Census database.

China’s Ministry of Commerce and General Administration of Customs said helium under customs code 2804290010 could no longer be exported as of July 10.

The two-sentence announcement gave no reason for the decision, expiration date, exemptions, or transition period. It said any later adjustments would be announced separately.

The measure cuts off Chinese shipments while buyers are already dealing with reduced production in Qatar, a major global supplier. It also raises questions about helium imported into China from other producers and later sold abroad.

The Epoch Times asked industrial-gas supplier Airgas whether it had declared force majeure, reduced customer allocations, or imposed supply-related surcharges following the disruption in Qatar. No response was received by publication time.

Immediate Ban, Few Details

The Chinese agencies cited the country’s Foreign Trade Law, which allows authorities to temporarily restrict or prohibit trade in specified goods.

The July 10 measure is an export prohibition rather than a licensing requirement. The announcement names helium as the covered product but does not limit the measure to particular countries, buyers, or end users.

It does not say how customs authorities will handle helium imported from another country and then stored, processed, packaged, or re-exported from China.

The announcement also gives no instructions for contracts signed before July 10, goods already declared to customs, or shipments awaiting departure.

No exceptions were listed for medical, scientific, humanitarian, semiconductor, or other uses.

Qatar Production Losses

The helium market had been under pressure for months before China’s announcement.

QatarEnergy stopped production of liquefied natural gas and associated products at Ras Laffan on March 2 after Iranian military attacks on its facilities.

Further missile attacks on March 18 damaged LNG Trains 4 and 6. QatarEnergy said repairs would take three to five years.

The company estimated that the outage would reduce associated helium production by 309.54 million cubic feet annually—about 14 percent of Qatar’s helium exports.

Helium is recovered from certain natural-gas deposits and separated during gas processing. Global supply, therefore, depends on a limited number of large production and processing sites.

Qatar has also expanded its direct helium trade with China. In February 2025, QatarEnergy signed a 20-year agreement to supply high-purity helium to China, its first direct long-term helium sales agreement with a Chinese buyer.

China’s new prohibition does not affect production inside Qatar. It prevents helium already within China’s export system from being sold overseas while output from Qatar remains reduced.

Chips, MRI Systems, and Aerospace

Helium has the lowest boiling point of any element and remains liquid at temperatures needed to cool superconducting equipment. It is also inert, meaning it does not readily react with other substances.

Those properties make it difficult to replace in some low-temperature and precision applications.

Semiconductor manufacturers use helium in controlled production environments and other manufacturing processes. Hospitals use it to cool superconducting magnets in magnetic resonance imaging systems.

Laboratories, engineering, scientific work, and specialty-gas applications accounted for 22 percent of U.S. helium use in 2025, according to the Geological Survey.

Controlled atmospheres, fiber-optic production, and semiconductor manufacturing accounted for 17 percent. Magnetic resonance imaging accounted for 15 percent, and aerospace uses represented 9 percent.

The United States remains a major helium producer. In 2025, nine U.S. plants produced crude helium, 11 produced gaseous helium, and five produced Grade-A helium, according to USGS. Helium was also stored underground at three sites in Texas.

The Semiconductor Industry Association has told the federal government that chip manufacturers require a continuous supply of helium and that a sudden disruption could cause price spikes and delays while companies seek alternative sources.

China’s July 10 announcement did not state how long the prohibition would remain in force or when authorities would issue their first adjustment.