Rift Helium held an opening ceremony at the London Stock Exchange yesterday after joining the AIM market on 22 April
Helium is to be included on Tanzania’s new critical and strategic minerals list, which is expected to be officially published shortly.
Rift Helium – which recently began trading on London Stock Exchange’s AIM market – said it marked a positive development for Tanzania’s emerging helium sector and further supports the country’s potential to play a meaningful role in the global helium supply chain.
Charles FitzRoy, Director & CEO of Rift Helium, said, “The proposed inclusion of helium within the country’s new critical and strategic minerals list further underlines the growing recognition of helium’s strategic importance.”
He added its recent admission to AIM provides the platform to progress our funded exploration programme at the Upepo Project and capitalise on Tanzania’s proven Rukwa Basin.
Unlike legacy helium supplies, which are typically byproducts of natural gas extraction, Tanzania’s helium is released from ancient rocks by volcanic heat and naturally stored in gas-phase traps. This yields exceptionally high helium grades with no associated greenhouse gas emissions.
But challenges for operators include exploration and geological risk, infrastructure deficits and capital intensity.
Competition is rising with Australian helium exploration company Noble Helium preparing a multi-stage drilling campaign after securing a drilling rig. Mobilisation is scheduled for June, with drilling expected to start in early July.
Tanzania is primarily targeting Asian and European helium export markets. As global supply chains face vulnerabilities, highlighted by the current , these regions represent roughly 90% of global helium imports.
The crisis has underlined how critical helium is to key sectors such as healthcare and semiconductors, its sensitivity to geopolitical risk and irreplaceability as a finite resource.
