The semiconductor industry is paying attention to the unexpected domestic supply instability caused by difficulties in importing semiconductor-grade helium (He) due to logistics disruptions in the United States, despite the abundance of helium in production regions.

According to the semiconductor specialty gas industry, the supply of helium imported from the United States is reportedly facing very difficult circumstances.

The supply instability of U.S. helium has persisted since May of last year, reportedly due to a decrease in ship voyages in the U.S. following the COVID-19 pandemic and the closure of some ports due to a shortage of personnel.

It is reported that U.S.-made helium shipped domestically is imported via a direct route from the Port of Los Angeles to the Port of Busan, but dozens of cargo ships are currently waiting to enter the port of Los Angeles, and due to the severe labor shortage triggered by COVID-19, loading goods at the port is taking a considerable amount of time.

It has been reported that due to a shortage of delivery personnel and trucks, there are also situations where helium cannot be delivered from production sites to ports.

In particular, as the number of cargo ships waiting at the Port of Los Angeles carrying helium containers increases, it is reported that the containers are being tied to ships or delivery vehicles and are unable to rotate.

An official stated that, as a result, importers bringing helium from the U.S. into the country are frequently requesting emergency rentals of helium containers from competitors due to a shortage of containers.

In this reality, those in charge of direct flights to the U.S.It is reported that there are significant difficulties in importing U.S. helium, as it is difficult to even make shipping reservations with the national carrier HMM.

Consequently, the helium industry abandoned importing U.S.-made helium and turned to orders from Qatar, but it is reported that even this is proving difficult.

It is reported that importing helium from Qatar takes a considerable amount of time because there are no direct routes, requiring transit through multiple ports; furthermore, since there are no domestic shipping companies, overseas carriers must be used, making shipping reservations difficult.

Despite these drawbacks, it is reported that all orders are currently converging on Qatari helium due to the practical difficulties in importing U.S.-made helium.

Meanwhile, the Russian Amur Helium Plant, which opened last year, was expected to help with the domestic helium supply early this year; however, it has been revealed that the supply has been completely suspended due to a recent fire at the plant.

In addition, it is known that the port of Vladivostok, which is responsible for supplying Russian helium, has a limited amount of helium that can be imported at once because the port is small, making it difficult for large cargo ships to enter and exit, so operations are mainly carried out by small and medium-sized cargo ships.

Consequently, there is little expectation for the supply of Russian helium.

Amidst this, as Xi'an, China was locked down due to COVID-19, it was reported that Iwatani, which supplies helium to Samsung Electronics, faced difficulties in supplying it due to a shortage of containers as it was difficult to transport helium containers that had entered Samsung Electronics' Xi'an factory.

In response, it is reported that other suppliers besides Iwatani have urgently supplied helium; however, it is said that these suppliers are also commonly experiencing a shortage of helium containers and are scrambling to secure them.

Regarding helium production, the United States and KataIt is reported that helium production in Russia and other countries is not problematic.

Consequently, it is expected that the helium supply shortage will be resolved once the logistics crisis is resolved.

However, a variable will be the bidding for special gases, such as helium, to be used by SpaceX in the U.S., which is scheduled for around June of this year.

The industry believes that this could affect the securing of import volumes for domestic semiconductor helium, as it guarantees much higher profits for suppliers compared to supplying domestic semiconductor helium, as large quantities can be supplied directly from U.S. sources without being significantly affected by purity, unlike semiconductor-grade helium.

The industry predicted that supply instability for semiconductor helium would continue this year, stating that it would be difficult to resolve logistics issues in the short term under the current situation.