What Happened
Global Helium Supply Chain Disrupted by Geopolitical Tensions
The 2026 US-Iran war and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz have delivered a sharp shock to the global helium market. Helium, extracted primarily as a byproduct of natural-gas processing, has no short-term substitutes in many critical applications. The crisis has highlighted helium’s structural fragility, with prices and allocations likely to stay elevated until Hormuz logistics normalize and damaged capacity is restored or replaced, as reported by Energy News Beat.