By
8 min ago 2 min read
US online business operator Onfolio Holdings (Onfolio) has signed a binding letter of intent for a strategic combination with helium firm Paramount Helium, marking its planned entry into the US industrial gas market.
Through the proposed transaction, Onfolio would gain access to the St. Johns unit in Apache County, Arizona, which contains an estimated 20 billion cubic feet of recoverable helium.
Onfolio values the St. Johns Field helium resource at $3bn.
Paramount Helium has agreed to terms with Proton Green’s secured creditors to acquire the senior debt secured against Houston-headquartered helium specialist Proton Green’s helium and carbon dioxide (CO2) assets at the St. Johns unit, which would give Paramount legal control of the assets.
In 2023, Proton Green said its St. Johns unit asset held an estimated 33 billion cubic feet of helium and 517 billion tons of CO2 in accessible reservoirs across around 170,500 acres.
Onfolio said the proposed project could support the semiconductor manufacturing, aerospace, and defense industries through domestic helium production.
The company said independent analysis identified helium-3 at St. Johns unit, which is a rare isotope of helium with applications in quantum computing.
According to Richard Brook, a specialist in helium supply and application, of helium-3 are found mixed in with helium-4 on Earth, but only at around 150 ppb (parts-per-billion).
However, it is continuously deposited on the Moon’s surface via the solar wind-streams of charged particles emitted by the Sun, which carry helium-3 as part of their payload, he added.
In August 2023, Proton Green made its of helium produced from its St. Johns unit Phase 1 helium extraction plant.
