The world's liquid helium depends on 16 plants. Building a new one takes 3 to 6 years. Why? Helium is different from most other gases. When extracted from natural gas, every other component freezes out during cryogenic processing. But above โ228ยฐC, the standard industrial method of expanding gas through a valve to cool it makes helium hotter, not colder. So liquefaction at โ269ยฐC requires turboexpanders spinning at up to 250,000 rpm. Getting helium to 99.9999% semiconductor grade means concentrating it 1,250 times, then purifying it through 7 stages across a 900-degree temperature range. The final stage uses zirconium alloy cartridges at 700ยฐC to chemically bind impurities below 1 part per billion. The turboexpanders are built by less than five companies worldwide, the zirconium cartridges by even fewer. Lead times for either: 12 to 24 months. The US sold its strategic helium reserve in January 2024. Semiconductor fabs carry about one week of inventory.