The U.S. Department of Energy has officially designated helium as a critical material due to its essential role in semiconductor manufacturing and the increasing risk of supply disruptions, officials announced Friday. This classification is expected to unlock additional federal funding for domestic helium producers and enhance government oversight of the material’s supply chain.
Helium is primarily obtained as a byproduct of natural gas processing. The United States remains the world’s largest producer of both natural gas and helium, with major reserves and extraction facilities located in states including Wyoming, Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. Other significant helium producers include Qatar and Russia.
However, global helium supplies face mounting uncertainties. Qatar’s helium exports have been severely restricted following Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz amid ongoing conflict with Israel and the United States. Iran has also targeted Qatar’s infrastructure through strikes, further complicating export capabilities. Separately, Russia introduced temporary export controls on helium in April to conserve its domestic resources.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright emphasized that the designation aligns with efforts to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign sources of critical materials, reinforce domestic manufacturing, support American jobs, and safeguard economic and national security. “President Trump is bringing back America’s manufacturing industry, and that means making sure we have the materials needed to build things in America again,” Wright said.
Helium’s importance extends beyond its common use in balloons. Assistant Secretary of Energy Audrey Robertson highlighted helium’s vital role in energy production technologies—including wind, solar, and nuclear power—space exploration, medical imaging, and advanced research. Its unique physical properties, such as nonflammability and an extremely low boiling point, make it irreplaceable in applications like semiconductors, quantum and supercomputing, and superconducting magnets.
Robertson noted that helium could represent a critical vulnerability in supply chains if availability were compromised. “Helium is one of those components that could be a single point of failure, where we cannot let that happen,” she said. Designating it as critical is a preventative measure intended to ensure continued availability and support the future of American competitiveness and energy security, which are closely tied to national security.
To qualify for the critical materials list, a substance must fulfill essential functions within one or more energy technologies and face significant risk of supply disruption. Prior to helium’s inclusion, metallurgical coal used in steelmaking was the most recent addition in 2025. Fluorine remains the only other gas on the list.
The move signals a strategic priority for the U.S. to maintain a reliable supply of helium amid growing geopolitical tensions and evolving industrial demands.