For most people, when they think about helium, they think about balloons floating aloft in the sky. It turns out, there is plenty of helium right under our feet, especially here in southern Saskatchewan.  

For Royal Helium, a company based out of Saskatoon, they look to this part of the province as an opportunity, and one they are working on developing in the coming months with projects. Wednesday, they started with a drilling project in the southwest, and they are also looking towards the southeast, for more drilling to be done in the coming months and years.  

“We just launched this week, announced our first drilling program at Climax,” said Andrew Davidson, the President and CEO of Royal Helium. “We’re drilling three wells. The next drilling program is intended to be focused on the Bengough area.” 

Davidson explained the helium properties, while in the same province, are very different geologically. However, in the southeast part of the province, in particular between Bengough and Weyburn, are some of the highest helium cuts ever taken. 

Helium is utilized within a number of sectors and industries. 

"People consume helium on a daily basis without knowing it,” explained Davidson.  

In addition to balloons, which most people think of, helium is also used in MRIs, used in space exploration, and used in the manufacturing of a number of electronics such as semiconductors and microchips.  

The product will be exported from Saskatchewan; however, they will need to get it ready for export. This involves liquefaction of the gas, and from there it can be shipped globally like natural gas. The refining of the product, as well as the extraction of the helium, has the potential to create a number of jobs across the region. 

“The operations of a helium drill site are functionally the same as an oil and gas drill program,” Davidson pointed out. With that in mind, they are focused on building the program within the province and using Saskatchewan people. This has the potential to create a number of jobs, becoming an important employer within the province. 

“We love our neighbours all across Canada, but we want this project to benefit Saskatchewan people first,” added Davidson.  

Royal has a number of land packages across southwest and southeast Saskatchewan, totally a million acres, with rapid development expected to happen across both halves of the province.