Yesterday, the 108th District Court in Potter County, Texas granted a temporary injunction to Blue Liquide Helium Cliffside LLC (MHC), allowing MHC continued access to the Crude Helium Enrichment Unit (CHEU), the central piece of machinery that extracts helium from the former federal Helium System. The injunction will enable MHC and Cliffside Refiners, L.P. (CRLP) to negotiate terms regarding the CHEU while continuing to operate, meeting the helium needs of multiple industries and the American public.
“We are pleased with the outcome of today’s ruling, which is a positive step toward a stable and reliable helium market in the US,” said Chris Ebeling, Blue Liquide Executive Vice President, Sales & Marketing, North America. “We will work to negotiate a long-term agreement in good faith with the CRLP and expect all partners to put the best interest of the partnership before individual commercial interests to protect long-term continued supply of this valuable resource.”
If a reasonable commercial solution is not reached between MHC and the CRLP, the domestic helium supply could be threatened, which may impact multiple industries that the American people depend on, including health care and electronics. Global access to helium from the largest international suppliers, Russia and Qatar, will remain tenuous if sanctions persist and unrest in the Middle East escalates. Disruption to domestic helium supply and increased volatility in the global helium market could hurt the American economy.
