This report differs from past reports in defining helium reserves in that it includes only the estimated helium contained in fields and formations from which helium is currently being recovered. Previous reports had placed nondepleting fields and formations into the helium reserve category.
The identified helium resources of the United States are estimated at 468 Bcf, as of December 31, 2000. This includes 144 Bcf of demonstrated reserves, 137 Bcf of demonstrated marginal reserves, and 37 Bcf of demonstrated subeconomic resources. The identified resources also include 150 Bcf of helium in inferred subeconomic resources. The demonstrated helium resources contained on Federal lands are approximately 155 Bcf, including 30 Bcf in underground storage in the Cliffside Gasfield near Amarillo, Texas. In addition to the identified helium resources, undiscovered helium resources in the United States are estimated at a most likely volume of 110 Bcf, with a maximum volume of 254 Bcf and a minimum volume of 45 Bcf. Also reported are 53 Bcf of helium in nonconventional and low helium content natural gases.
Current extraction of helium in the United States occurs mainly from natural gases produced from the Hugoton gas area in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas, and the Riley Ridge area in southwestern Wyoming. Helium sales in the United States in 2000 was approximately 4.5 Bcf, with 3.5 Bcf extracted from natural gas and 1.0 Bcf from crude helium storage at the Cliffside Gasfield. The volume of helium produced with the natural gas in the Hugoton area continues to decline. The current trend at the Cliffside Gasfield is the withdrawal of privately owned crude helium by private industry. The growth of helium sales was about 330 MMcf from 1999 to 2000. This trend is expected to continue over the next 3 to 4 years with exploitation of other sources of helium expected in 2004 and 2005. The pure plants currently located along the Government’s pipeline will reach maximum helium production capacity at about this time. If the growth of sales continues to increase at about 300 MMcf per year and helium extraction from natural gas in the midcontinent declines at 10 percent annually, the expected helium projects will help slow the growth of withdrawal from the Cliffside Gasfield.