Iran severely damages Qatar's helium exports, global chip production faces crisis

Iran’s military strike on Qatar’s natural gas export facilities is turning an energy crisis into a systemic threat to the global semiconductor supply chain.

As a source for one-third of global helium supply, Qatar’s Ras Laffan facilities suffered "massive" damage, sending helium spot prices doubling in 14 days and contract surcharges rising over 30%.

With Qatar's state-owned energy company announcing a 14% cut in annual helium exports, the crisis has shifted from expectation to real impact—Korean chip stocks are suffering heavy losses. Samsung and SK Hynix rely on Qatar for about 65% of their helium imports; Korean chipmakers have lost over $200 billion in market value this month. Experts warn: The real shortage shock hasn't come yet, but "will erupt in a few weeks."

Qatar’s Facilities Severely Damaged, One-Third of Global Supply Suddenly Lost

Qatar owns the world’s largest single natural gas field. Its Ras Laffan facility is the largest liquefied natural gas plant in the world, with helium refined as a by-product of natural gas production, accounting for about 30% of global helium supply.

On March 2, an Iranian drone attack forced Qatar’s state-owned QatarGas to halt LNG and "related products" production. Four days later, QatarGas declared "force majeure," meaning it cannot fulfill its contractual obligations.

Last Wednesday and Thursday, Ras Laffan suffered further attacks from Iran. QatarGas then reported "massive" facility damage, with repairs expected to take years and annual helium exports reduced by 14%.

According to a WallstreetCN article, all three helium production facilities in Qatar have stopped operating. The American Chemical Society journal C&EN warned that "if the conflict lasts more than two weeks, the chaos facing helium users may take months to resolve."

Phil Kornbluth, President of Kornbluth Helium Consulting, said:

"This makes the situation worse. The most optimistic scenario is partial helium production recovery after six weeks, but as things stand, it's highly unlikely."

Helium spot prices have doubled in the 14 days since the crisis erupted; contract surcharges now exceed 30%. Kornbluth expects prices to continue rising: "If the shutdown lasts, contract prices could increase substantially, with much room to rise."

However, Kornbluth also notes that the shortage has not actually arrived yet. Helium containers that were being loaded when the conflict began still need several weeks to reach Asia. "No one has been cut off yet, but in a few weeks, the shortage will truly break out."

Helium: The Undervalued Lifeblood of Chip Manufacturing

In public perception, helium is just the inert gas that makes balloons float, but in semiconductor manufacturing, it is an irreplaceable key material used in wafer cooling processes.

During the etching process in chip manufacturing, helium must be continuously blown onto the back of wafers to quickly and evenly dissipate heat and stabilize wafer surface temperature.

Jacob Feldgoise, an analyst at Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology, notes that in this process, "helium is an excellent thermal conductor. Chip factories blow helium onto the back of wafers to accelerate and harmonize heat dissipation."

Jong-hwan Lee, professor of semiconductor devices at Sangmyung University in Korea, stated unequivocally: under current semiconductor processes, there is no feasible substitute for helium in cooling wafers.

Helium’s industrial uses extend to medical and aerospace fields—medical industries use it to cool superconducting magnets in MRI devices, while aerospace uses it to purge rocket fuel tanks. As companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin increase launch frequency, demand continues to rise.

Notably, helium’s physical properties make storage and transportation extremely complicated: Helium molecules are tiny and leaks occur even from the smallest gaps; liquid helium must be stored in insulated containers and transported via the Strait of Hormuz. These special containers preserve helium for only 35-48 days; after this time, helium vaporizes and escapes through relief valves.

Currently, about 200 such containers are stranded in the Middle East, each costing around $1 million, and global backup container numbers are extremely limited. Kornbluth said,

"Moving these containers out of Qatar and transporting them to places that can refill them will take quite some time. This initial period of supply chain restructuring is likely the most severe phase of the shortage."

Korean Chip Giants Hit First, Over $200 Billion Wiped Off Market Value

This crisis directly impacts the Korean semiconductor industry.

According to a WallstreetCN article, data from the Korea Trade Association shows 64.7% of Korea’s 2025 helium imports come from Qatar.

Fitch Ratings notes in a report that Korea is among the most vulnerable countries to helium supply shortages; Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix—the world's two largest memory chip makers—face major supply risks.

Seoul’s government has listed helium among 14 semiconductor supply chain materials requiring wartime priority monitoring. Professor Jong-hwan Lee warns:

"Even a supply disruption of just a few materials can shake the entire semiconductor manufacturing process, as every step depends on the previous one."

The market has already responded: Korean chipmakers have lost over $200 billion in market value this month, as investors digest expectations for a 15%-20% drop in output by 2026.

WallstreetCN notes SK Hynix currently has some helium inventory and has secured additional new supply channels, thus escaping short-term impact for now. But mid-term risks remain— even if supply isn’t completely cut off, switching to verified alternative suppliers will take time.

Bloomberg Economics analyst Michael Deng notes: “Helium shortages may force chipmakers to prioritize higher-margin AI chips over lower-margin components.” This means consumer-grade chip markets will feel pressure first.

Global Supply Patterns and Limits of Substitutes

Global helium production is highly concentrated.

The United States is the largest producer, with 81 million cubic meters output last year; Qatar, Algeria, and Russia are other major producers, but Russia’s supply is limited by US and EU sanctions. The US Geological Survey estimates the US holds 8.5 billion cubic meters of recoverable helium reserves, with other regions holding 31.3 billion cubic meters.

Though the US and Australia can theoretically supply substitutes, reorganizing supply chains takes time. Kornbluth notes about 200 specialized transport containers are stranded in the Middle East; reassigning these and establishing new supply lines itself is the major bottleneck in this crisis.

Experts generally believe a comprehensive helium crisis is unlikely—in short supply, the helium industry will allocate by importance, with chip manufacturing and medical industries getting priority.

Since helium accounts for only a small part of total semiconductor production costs, chip factories are "willing to pay higher prices" to ensure supply. But this logic presumes substitute supply arrives on time.

Bromine: The Next Potential Risk Point

WallstreetCN also points out that besides helium, another key semiconductor raw material—bromine—deserves attention. Bromine is used for semiconductor etching processes, with high-purity hydrogen bromide widely applied in polysilicon etching for DRAM and NAND flash manufacturing.

97.5% of Korea's bromine imports come from Israel, making bromine the most Middle East-dependent among Korea's 14 key semiconductor supply chain items. Currently bromine is considered a potential risk, still within the relatively safe zone, but if the situation spreads, its vulnerability will quickly be exposed.

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