Pulsar Helium back at work near Babbitt

Pulsar Helium is getting back to work at its helium discovery near Babbitt.

With spring road restrictions lifted in the north, Pulsar Helium Inc., President and Chief Executive Officer Thomas Abraham-James said the Vancouver, British Columbia-based company is immediately recommencing field operations at its Topaz helium project.

“My colleagues and I are excited to obtain the outstanding data from Jetstream #1 and everything is in place to do so,” Abraham-James said in a news release. “I look forward to keeping the market updated with results as they arrive.”

The 2,200-foot deep well has already shown great promise.

Analysis of helium from the well in February found concentrations of up to 13.8 percent, one of the highest concentrations ever discovered in the world.

Work at the project will now include road improvements, civil works, down-hole logging, well completion, and flow testing, Pulsar Helium said.

The project is being designed and will be completed to be capable of transitioning to a future helium production well, Pulsar Helium said.

The well is located on private land.

However, area legislators are moving legislation ahead to establish permitting and regulatory procedures and capture revenue from the well production should helium from the deposit is also determined to be on public land.

Rep. Dave Lislegard, DFL-Aurora said establishing a regulatory framework is important.

“It’s exciting to see work underway at the site near Babbitt, and a regulatory framework to properly handle this new discovery is one of the most crucial remaining pieces to finishing our legislative session,” Lislegard said. “The House Environment and Natural Resources bill contains my legislation to create this important structure to ensure we properly protect our natural resources and develop a fair royalty structure on state-managed lands so our schools, communities, and residents can benefit from this opportunity.”

“We don’t know how big the pool is,” Rep. Roger Skraba, R-Ely said. “Because we have no policies in place (for helium extraction), we have to figure this thing out.”

State of Minnesota regulatory agencies are checking with states such as North Dakota and Wyoming to see what policies exist in those states, Skraba said.

“If there’s gas coming out of public land, we want to be sure the public gets its share,” Skraba said.

Sen. Grant Hauschild, DFL-Hermantown said the legislation is moving ahead.

“We’re thrilled in northern Minnesota that once again we have an opportunity to provide another critical resource like helium,” Hauschild said. “That’s why I’ve been working on legislation to help us establish an expedited framework to ensure our local communities and region benefit, while guaranteeing Pulsar can continue exploring this deposit as they need. I look forward to continue championing this industry opportunity as we move forward.”

Helium is inert, non-toxic, non-flammable, and non-hazardous, according to Pulsar Helium.

It’s used in semi-conductor fabrication, magnetic resonance image (MRI) scanners, fiber optic cables, as a coolant in nuclear reactors, and in space launches as a pressuring agent in fuel tanks.

It’s also used in arc welding, for lead detection in the hulls of ships, vehicle air conditioning systems, high pressure equipment, and computer hard drives.