Searching for He and H2: European Company Drills for Helium and Seeks Hydrogen in Minnesota
A company which is successfully drilling for large deposits of helium in Minnesota also is on the search for potential future hydrogen discoveries.
Europe-based Pulsar Helium has acquired more than 59,000 acres in St. Louis and Itasca counties. The acquisition of Quantum Hydrogen and additional mineral rights gives Pulsar land just west of its active Topaz project, where drilling has encountered helium reserves.
The company’s Jetstream 3 drilling project, which started this fall, has tapped pressurized gas in line with previous helium discoveries in the region.
“The Jetstream #3 well commenced drilling on October 17 and has encountered pressurized gas with a calculated bottom-hole pressure of approximately 960 psi, underscoring a highly charged gas reservoir,” reads a Pulsar Helium release about the findings. “This development marks a significant step forward in the ongoing drilling campaign, building on the success of the earlier Jetstream #1 and #2 wells and confirming the continuity of the helium-rich system.”
Helium, which is known by the chemical symbol He, is a colorless, odorless and light gas with the lowest boiling point among all the known chemical elements. It is second only to hydrogen in abundance and is used in the medical, space, defense, manufacturing and energy industries, including nuclear fusion.
In August, Pulsar’s Jetstream #1 well was successfully flow-tested and able to deliver “a peak gas flow rate of approximately 1.3 million cubic feet per day with a sustained flow of 7-8% helium,” reads a company release about the findings.
In November, Pulsar Helium acquired Quantum Hydrogen Inc. from Oscillate plc. Quantum holds exclusive mineral rights for non-hydrocarbon gases within a 59,100-gross acre position. The land asset has geological traits indicating helium and hydrogen reserves.
Pulsar also is drilling for helium in Greenland. Helium and hydrogen traditionally has been produced in tandem with natural gas exploration, which is carbon intensive.
Hydrogen, known by the symbol H2, is an energy dense and light gas also in petrochemical and power generation applications. H2 itself does not contain carbon in its molecular chain and does not emit carbon dioxide at the point of use.
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About the Author
EnergyTech Staff
Rod Walton is senior editor for EnergyTech.com. He has spent 17 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist.
Walton formerly was energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World. Later, he spent six years covering the electricity power sector for Pennwell and Clarion Events. He joined Endeavor and EnergyTech in November 2021.
He can be reached at [email protected].
EnergyTech is focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids.
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