QatarEnergy signs helium supply deal with Air Liquide

Doha-based QatarEnergy has signed a long-term sales and purchase agreement with industrial gases company Air Liquide to supply around 300 million cu ft of helium annually from Qatar. The helium will be used in applications including semiconductor and fibre optics manufacturing with Qatar to more than double domestic helium capacity.

In a statement issued, QatarEnergy said the agreement marks a significant milestone in the long-standing relationship between the two companies, both of which are major players in the global industrial gases sector.

Air Liquide was among the first customers of Qatari helium and remains a key buyer, as well as a technology provider for Qatar’s helium production facilities, the company said.

Commenting on the agreement, Minister of State for Energy Affairs and President/CEO of QatarEnergy, Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi, welcomed the continuation of the partnership. He said Air Liquide has been a strategic partner in Qatar’s helium industry since the opening of the country’s first helium plants in 2005, playing a central role in supplying high-quality Qatari helium to critical industries worldwide.

Al Kaabi said Qatar is among the world’s largest exporters of helium, adding that the country’s production capacity is set to more than double as a result of liquefied natural gas expansion projects at the North Field.

He said the increased output would support a wide range of sectors and industries that rely on helium, contributing to global industrial growth and human development.