Interior Closes on Federal Helium System Sale to Gas Supplier

The sale of the Federal Helium System to Messer LLC was finalized Thursday by the Bureau of Land Management, the agency said.

Messer originally bid $21 million for 1 billion cubic feet of crude helium and $353 million for an additional 800 million cubic feet of helium, a gas field facility, 38,314 acres of gas interests, 23 natural gas wells, 423 miles of pipeline running from Texas to Kansas, and other assets.

The company’s bid for the crude helium was increased to $70 million, bringing the total to $423 million, BLM spokesman Brian Hires said.

The sale of the system, ...