The Energy Department designated helium a critical material Friday, just days after a 60 Minutes report explored how the Iran war has affected global helium supplies.
The designation makes additional federal financing available to helium producers. The department said the gas plays an “essential role in semiconductor manufacturing and advanced energy technologies.”
Although the United States remains the world’s largest helium producer, industries across the economy have experienced the impact of a shortage. The strain comes seven months after Iranian strikes hit a Qatari gas facility and the Strait of Hormuz was effectively closed.
Under federal law, materials classified as critical by the Energy Department must face a significant risk of supply-chain disruption and perform an essential function in energy technologies.
Helium is a nonrenewable gas that becomes liquid at extremely low temperatures. While it is widely associated with balloons, the element is also vital to producing smartphones, automobiles, MRI machines and other advanced technologies—driving intense demand.
“Helium is essential to producing the semiconductors and advanced technologies that power our economy,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Friday as he announced the designation.
“By designating helium as a critical material, we are taking another step toward securing our supply chains, creating American jobs, and ensuring the United States leads the world in energy and technological innovation,” Wright said.
The February closure of the Strait of Hormuz left roughly one-third of the world’s helium supply trapped in the Persian Gulf. Supply concerns deepened in March, when Iranian strikes hit Ras Laffan, a helium-producing facility in Qatar.
In its Federal Register announcement, the Energy Department called helium “non-substitutable for multiple critical energy functions,” including semiconductor production, leak testing for natural gas infrastructure and quantum computing. The gas is also essential to major medical and scientific applications, the department said.
The announcement also pointed to rising global demand for helium.
The Energy Department’s previous critical-material designation came in 2025, when it added metallurgical coal, which is used to produce coke, a crucial ingredient in steel manufacturing. The list now includes 20 designated critical materials.
