When we last looked at the helium market in March, the immediate concern was the Strait of Hormuz. Qatar, the world’s second-largest helium producer, accounted for around 35% of global output in 2024, and the shutdown at Ras Laffan exposed how much of the market depended on a few plants and shipping routes. Within days, spot helium prices had roughly doubled as buyers scrambled for alternative supply.
Six months later, that disruption has not simply faded into the background. On 15th September, only four vessels carrying commodities were recorded transiting Hormuz, compared with a pre-war average of around 125 a day. The damage at Ras Laffan has also proved more serious than a short operational interruption, with QatarEnergy now seeking US LNG supply agreements running through to 2031 while parts of its damaged infrastructure are repaired.
For helium, the connection is direct. Qatar recovers helium as a byproduct of natural gas processing, so disruptions to LNG operations also constrain helium production, as the original March Reuters report highlighted. That is why the events around Hormuz matter beyond energy markets alone, they affect a specialist gas used in medical imaging, semiconductor manufacturing, aerospace and scientific research.
The argument in March was therefore not simply that war risk could push helium prices higher for a few weeks. It was that the crisis exposed how concentrated and fragile the supply chain had become, and why additional sources outside the Gulf could become more strategically important. Six months on, that question has become more pressing, because the market has adapted, but the underlying concentration problem has not gone away.
Georgina Energy, Hussar Finally Approaches the Drill Bit
Georgina Energy (LON: GEX) remains one of the more binary stories in the group. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange’s Main Market rather than AIM, and its investment case still rests heavily on the 100% owned Hussar project in Western Australia. Independent work has assigned Hussar 2U prospective resources of around 285 Bcf of helium, 315 Bcf of hydrogen and 2.93 Tcf of natural gas. Those numbers remain prospective, however, and drilling is still required to show what is actually present and capable of flowing.
Since March, the important change has been that Hussar has moved steadily from planning towards physical site preparation. Georgina executed its drilling contract in May, while work through the summer included access roads, the drill pad, camp facilities and preparation for mobilisation of the Ensign 970 rig. A supporting water well was completed in August, with reported flow of around 250,000 to 350,000 litres per day. These are not headline exploration results, but they are the practical steps needed before the prospect can finally be tested.
Funding has also been a major part of the progression. Georgina completed a £1.5 million fundraise in July, followed by two further raises of £1.25 million each in August. At the same time, the company has said the Hussar drilling programme and associated development works will be funded by Harlequin and its partners. That arrangement reduces some of the direct drilling burden on Georgina, although the repeated equity raises show that working capital and the wider portfolio still require funding.
The next milestone is therefore unusually simple to understand, Hussar to be drilled. The planned programme is expected to run for around 50 days from spud to completion and will target the Townsend Formation and deeper fractured basement for helium, hydrogen and natural gas. If the historic data and independent resource estimates are supported by modern drilling, Georgina could move rapidly from a pre-drill story to one with a defined discovery. If not, much of the value currently attached to Hussar would need to be reassessed.
Anthony Hamilton, Chief Executive Officer of Georgina Energy, commented:
“Georgina’s contractors have done an excellent job of preparing the site and access roads to enable the mobilisation of the Ensign 970 drill rig to enable the drill testing of this exciting prospect, however, unexpected heavy rainfall and road closures have caused the targeted drill program to be delayed and we look forward to making further announcements in due course.”
