Perspective
Nov. 15, 2022
Labarge: Helium explained
While helium helps make party balloons lighter than air, it’s also a critical element for many advanced technologies, like MRIs for healthcare, rockets for space exploration, and microchips for advanced computing.
Few places are as essential to meeting the demand for helium as ExxonMobil’s LaBarge facility in Wyoming, which provides 20% of the world’s supply. With an estimated eight decades worth of helium left to produce there, LaBarge is poised to play a significant role through the end of this century.
Few places are as essential to meeting the demand for helium as ExxonMobil’s LaBarge facility in Wyoming, which provides 20% of the world’s supply. With an estimated eight decades worth of helium left to produce there, LaBarge is poised to play a significant role through the end of this century.
Perspective
Nov. 15, 2022
Helium is one of the most abundant elements in the universe, but it’s tough to find here on Earth. Its importance has grown in the past half century because it’s crucial to advanced technologies like MRIs, microchips and space exploration.
ExxonMobil’s LaBarge facility is well established as an important player for the future of carbon capture and storage. As the source of 20% of the world’s helium and with an 80-year supply remaining, it will also continue to play an important role in providing society with this critical element.
Helium’s unique traits make it both valuable and hard to source. It’s the second-lightest element on the periodic table (hydrogen is first). It cannot be combined with other substances, and it will not freeze or liquefy in Earth’s atmosphere. It also cannot be manufactured artificially. The only stable supplies of helium are found deep underground, often in pockets of natural gas. Helium production extracts and isolates the substance, making it viable for commercial use.
Extracting helium was not part of LaBarge’s original design when the facility began producing natural gas in the mid-1980s. After large quantities of helium were discovered underground, it soon became central to the facility’s operation.
Watch the video below to explore the pivotal role that helium plays at both the facility and in the world at large.
Explore more
ExxonMobil secures largest CO2 offshore storage site in the U.S.
- ExxonMobil has secured access to over 271,000-acres in Texas state waters; ideal for CO2 storage
- Agreement will directly benefit the Texas Permanent School Fund
- Latest example of ExxonMobil’s leadership in building a carbon capture industry in the U.S.
News releases
•
3 min read
• Oct. 10, 2024Pasta, beans and vegetable oil: bringing carbon capture and storage to summer camp
- More than 1,300 students in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi took part in STEM summer camps supported by ExxonMobil.
- Campers learned the science behind carbon capture and storage, a key technology to help reduce emissions.
- We worked with two historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to broaden the program’s reach.
Article
•
4 min read
• Sept. 10, 2024ExxonMobil signs carbon capture agreement with CF Industries in Mississippi
- We’ll remove up to 500,000 metric tons of CO2 annually from CF Industries’ site in Yazoo City.
- It’s the latest sign of our leadership in CCS, a proven emissions solution.
- Our total CCS customer commitments are now up to 5.5 MTA.
Article
•
3 min read
• July 25, 2024Breakthrough carbon capture technology ready for field testing
Key takeaways:
- We’re developing a breakthrough emissions-reduction technology.
- Carbonate fuel cells could capture CO2 more efficiently, cost-effectively.
- We’ll demonstrate this technology at our Rotterdam site starting in 2026.
News
•
3 min read
• May 22, 2024It slices! It dices! It can combat climate change!
Key takeaways:
- Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is a versatile climate tool.
- CCS enables multiple solutions, including low-carbon hydrogen.
- These solutions could reduce, or even remove, CO2 emissions.
Article
•
2 min read
• May 16, 2024What could an Indonesian CCS hub look like?
Key takeaways:
- Indonesia is evaluating a major potential carbon capture and storage (CCS) hub.
- The hub could store approximately 3 metric gigatons of CO2.
- Indonesia is working with Singapore to develop a potential CCS value chain in Asia Pacific.
News
•
2 min read
• May 13, 2024