Air Products CEO Eduardo Menezes has said he expected headwinds in the helium market to continue into 2026 and 2027.
Helium has been a volatile earnings contributor for the industrial gas major in recent years, and it continues to impact Air Products and the wider industry on two fronts.
The sale to Messer of what was called the US Federal Helium Reserve, managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), has led to a more uncertain helium market in North America and more widely – and another major challenge is that prices in China have softened on cheaper helium reaching the market from Russia since late 2023.
“Helium is a different product, and it’s a more cyclical business – and it became more cyclical when the BLM ended the programme, and the balance of the volume went away,” said Air Products CEO Eduardo Menezes, speaking on the company’s Q2 earnings call yesterday.
Air Products is a sizeable player in helium compared with other majors. It provides helium options including ultra-high purity gas for scientific applications, through its Experis and BIP ranges, and much more.
Its experience in most respects mirrors that of competitor Air Liquide, which is also experiencing what it calls ‘helium headwinds’ in Asia, and particularly China, though Air Liquide is understood to have less exposure in terms of the size of its helium business.
Air Liquide CFO Jérôme Pelletan said in the major’s latest earnings call, last week, that the strong performance by the company in Asia was despite the knock it has taken on its helium business in the region.
Read more on helium supply and demand in gasworld’s RiskWatch report.
