Linde Secures Helium Source In Algerian Venture

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Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). The Algerian state owned company Sonatrach and Linde (XETRA:LING.DE) (Wiesbaden, Germany) are planning a joint helium production project in Skikda on the east coast of Algeria. Linde will hold 51% in both parts of the venture, which covers the establishment of production and distribution of product.

The $84 million plant is scheduled to go on stream in 2005. Built by Linde, the plant will produce 600 million cubic feet of helium per annum. As a major European supplier of helium, Linde will have secured a helium source of its own for the first time. To date the company has received the bulk of its supply from U.S. suppliers who have dominated global production and markets for the gas since the 1920's. The partners in the new project are planning to market the Algerian product throughout the world.

Helium is classified as a rare gas and a strategic resource. State-of-the-art technology applications use helium's very low temperature properties and super-conductivity for applications in magnetic resonance imaging, optical fiber technology, and electronic circuit manufacture. Global demand for helium increases by 5% to 10% annually.