Helium Shortage Could Crash The Internet15 Feb 2022 15:31
Just read that on oil price.com, bit dramatic...
LONDON, Feb. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, all the biggest names in tech are likely to find themselves scrambling to get their hands on more of this ultra-rare commodity. Without it, Netflix couldn't stream movies and shows to TVs around the world. Google couldn't support the 5.6 billion searches made per day. And Apple couldn't produce the millions of iPhones and Apple Watches that so many fanatics die for.
However, Big Tech's house of cards may be closer than ever to falling apart because of a massive supply squeeze that's only getting worse. That's because after 70+ years of production, the world's single largest source of this commodity, the US National Helium Reserve in Amarillo, TX has finally dried up.
Most wouldn't believe that a helium shortage could create a looming crisis for the entire tech sector. But what they don't know is helium plays a critical role in far more than just filling birthday balloons. Because of its unique properties, helium is one of the best options in the world for cooling the equipment needed to keep the world as we know it running.
That includes everything from diagnosing health problems (MRI machines) and connecting us with friends and family (fiber optic cables for the internet)...To building the world's most popular electronics (semiconductors) and keeping trillion-dollar businesses in operation (supercomputing and data centers). Now experts are predicting that we won't have enough of the rare gas with current production rates to last us for even the next 20 years.
Technology plays a bigger and more important role than ever in our world today, which is driving demand for helium sky-high at a time when supply is lower than ever. That has sent the price of helium soaring, making it over 100x more valuable than natural gas today ($2-5/Mcf versus $200-600/Mcf).
NOTE: Only three weeks ago they were quoting Helium 450-500 MCF. Hence it continues to rise.