DOINews: BLM Helium Sales Generate $215 Million for American Taxpayer in 2014

01/02/2015
Last edited 09/05/2019
Sign for the BLM-administered Cliffside Gas Field and Crude Helium Enrichment Unit in Amarillo, Texas.
The Federal Helium Program, administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Amarillo Field Office, is responsible for the conservation and sale of federally owned helium. Photo by BLM.
Screenshot from BLM video on Federal Helium Program:Operator monitoring computer screens in the control room.
View the Bureau of Land Management video about the BLM-administered Federal Helium Reserve. Screenshot from BLM video.
BLM Helium
Learn what makes helium unique, its many uses and the BLM's role in managing this resource. Graphic from BLM website.

BLM News Release

Dec. 29, 2014


New Transfer of $115 Million Augments $100 Million Already Delivered to U.S. Treasury


The Bureau of Land Management today will transfer $115 million to the U.S. Treasury for revenue generated from the sale and auction of crude helium from the Federal Helium Reserve, a resource owned by the American people and managed by the BLM's Amarillo, Texas, Field Office. Today's transfer augments an earlier transfer of $100 million for a total of $215 million for 2014.

There were three helium sales and one helium auction in fiscal year 2014. These sales were executed in accordance with the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013, which revitalized the Federal Helium Program and provided for market-based pricing and competitive auctions for the duration of the program. The federal program will sunset when either 3 billion cubic feet of helium remain or on Sept. 30, 2021, whichever comes first.

The Federal Helium Reserve is the nation's leading producer of crude helium for both the public and private sectors. Crude helium is an important resource for technology development and other important uses related to national defense, energy, medicine, industry, and space exploration. In 2014, the BLM's crude helium plant satisfied approximately 70 percent of the U.S. helium demand and more than 22 percent of the world's helium demand.

Related Link:

BLM-Amarillo Field Office

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