Air Products and Caliche Development Partners confirmed the successful operation and continued service of North America’s first helium salt storage cavern (the world’s second and now largest). The announcement was made by Walter L. Nelson, Vice President of Global Helium & Rare Gases for Air Products, during a keynote address given at the Helium Super Summit in Memorial City. Air Products holds exclusive rights to the He cavern through a long-term storage services agreement. The new cavern marks Caliche’s second to go online in just three years, bringing the company’s total capacity at its Beaumont storage complex to 8.0 million barrels. Creation of a third cavern at the facility is underway.
“Air Products’ contribution of industry-leading helium knowledge combined with trust in Caliche’s underground expertise led to truly innovative solutions related to the design challenges of storing such a small and valuable molecule,” said Dave Marchese, Chief Executive Officer of Caliche. “Caliche’s focus continues to be on fostering customer-centric, long-term relationships, and working through the challenges of storing carbon and hydrogen underground to support a carbon-neutral future.”
Caroline Wachtman, Director of Energy Transition & Capital Projects at Caliche, added: “We’re committed to growing in a way that builds on our team and partners’ unique experience mix. I’m excited to go out and amplify what we’ve done via this groundbreaking storage solution for helium with low-carbon projects.”
