Global shortage of helium?

[Anthony A.]

Big chain called Party City announced it will be closing 45 stores due to the shortage. Their main item is custom balloons for parties.

 

[Marie13]

Coworkers gave me a bunch of helium filled balloons on my 50th Birthday two months ago. They didn’t get it when I said there was a much better use for helium.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Big chain called Party City announced it will be closing 45 stores due to the shortage. Their main item is custom balloons for parties.

I saw that and that’s what prompted this thread.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Some people consider it a tech diving felony to use air at 200’.

What about 220’? Hell let’s round it up, how about 250’ on air are you still in?
The thing to see is really really good, once in a lifetime opportunity, maybe even some artifacts and treasures up for grabs. Very remote so no access to hyperbaric recompression should the need arise. And it’s warm water too, forgot to mention that part.

I’m just trying to find a hypothetical threshold.

 

[runsongas]

in the hypothetical that CCR doesn't exist and helium becomes impossible to get, my guess is you see a regression to a much smaller community undertaking riskier deep air dive profiles with a higher accident and fatality rate.

like in the old days of diving the doria.

 

[OceanEyes]

If there was something really grand to see at 200’ in some very remote part of the world, and there was no helium, only air and O2 (meaning any nitrox mixtures you desire) and O/C with any tank configuration you want, would you guys do it?

Absolutely.

Depending on the location and conditions, (cold water, ripping current, wreck penetration, anticipated work or task load, and etc.), I might deem it prudent to execute a few work-up dives prior to diving to 200’ on air. It’s probably been over 20 years since I’ve dived to that or greater depth on air other than in warm water, tropical locations with clear water and limited work loads, (though it was something that I’d done hundreds of times in my younger days), and thus it’s been a while since I’ve subjected myself to such a high partial pressure of nitrogen. I’m not certain about my aging brain and body’s tolerance to narcosis. Helium has been my friend for quite a while.

 

[broncobowsher]

I remember reading a while back that there is plenty of Helium, but since it was considered a strategic reserve the pricing was government controlled. As a byproduct of that the price is still fixed at a too low cost of $15 per thousand cubic feet. The problem being the cost to recover the Helium from natural gas is more than $15 per thou. So it is more economical for the gas industry to blow it than to recover it. Since the price is fixed by law, they can't just sell it for more. That makes Helium a higher markup and more profitable to the supply chain than most illegal drugs. If the price were to go unfixed, or at least adjusted to show a profit to the natural gas industry the supply would increase. The Helium pricing would initially become extremely volatile as "wholesale prices double, retail also doubles" bout would than go all over the map as supply increased, it would be on the market, prices would stabilizer at a lower price and there would be a lot more availability everywhere. All goes back decades to the cold war.

 

[ScubaWithTurk]

If there was something really grand to see at 200’ in some very remote part of the world, and there was no helium, only air and O2 (meaning any nitrox mixtures you desire) and O/C with any tank configuration you want, would you guys do it?

Nope. I have done deep air to 50 meters but didn't really care for it. Make it 60 meters and no chamber close...I don't do the dive. Call me risk averse.

The high and rising cost of helium is why I know many tech divers purchasing CCR units and also why I am going to start my CCR course very soon.

 

[runsongas]

air products paid 58.8 million for the 210 million CF of helium on auction this year from the BLM for winding down the helium reserve. or nearly 280 dollars per thousand cubic feet. it isn't a fixed price. the price of helium has been going up because the BLM auction price has been going up. for perspective, that figure is 135% higher than the auction price from last year per CF. suppliers other than air products have it tougher to source helium in the US this year.

the BLM helium auction is also the last to occur for the foreseeable future because they have hit their 3 billion CF min reserve this year. this partially explains why the auction prices went way up.

 

[Wookie]

Some people consider it a tech diving felony to use air at 200’.

What about 220’? Hell let’s round it up, how about 250’ on air are you still in?
The thing to see is really really good, once in a lifetime opportunity, maybe even some artifacts and treasures up for grabs. Very remote so no access to hyperbaric recompression should the need arise. And it’s warm water too, forgot to mention that part.

I’m just trying to find a hypothetical threshold.

At 250, it would have to be pretty spectacular.