Gas prices

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Amphiprion

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I know there is a standard market price for gold, silver etc. I would assume there is a standard market price for helium on a given day. Google has not been helpful as mostly it comes up with old news or low psi tanks for baloons. Anyone know of a link where the updated prices of helium are listed like on a commodities market?
 
I do not know if such a list exists, but check this out: it's thread where people around the world compare He prices. Very recent, too. Helium cost worldwide - RC Groups

In my very limited experience - which is borne out by the posters on the forum referenced above - the price of helium gas varies sharply from locale to locale, and in the US, from state to state. Here in HI, for example, it's very expensive: the gas has to be imported, and moreover, there's not much competition among industrial gas suppliers. That's why trimix diving isn't huge here, leastways, not on open circuit. A course director at my LDS said it cost him $500 to fill his steel 100s with mix (oxygen is also extremely expensive here). Back home in NYC, on the other hand, the price is more reasonable. If I may, I reckon your best bet would be to call industrial gas suppliers in your neighborhood (or wherever it is you want to dive) and ask for prices directly. That way, you can start building a mental map of price trends across the country.
 
Here is Florida, I can get a K-Bottle of Helium for $59 plus rental.
 
Its not traded like a commodity. 90+% comes from the reserves in TX. While there maybe a wholesale price (which probably varies for the same reasons the retail price does), the retail price ends up being set by delivery costs, volume discounts, and local demand.
 
[...]Here in HI, for example, it's very expensive: the gas has to be imported, and moreover, there's not much competition among industrial gas suppliers. That's why trimix diving isn't huge here, leastways, not on open circuit. A course director at my LDS said it cost him $500 to fill his steel 100s with mix (oxygen is also extremely expensive here). [...]

While not disputing that helium is very expensive here in Hawaii, I fill trimix in my garage and charge $1.25 per cubic foot, which is a slight markup over what I am able to buy UHP He from Air Liquide for, and a bit to cover the cylinder rental. Right now I'm charging $0.65 per cubic foot for ABO (same small markup).

That small markup is an attempt to cover the cost of electricity ($0.34 / kWh) to run my Rix and some to offset the wear and tear on my Haskel booster pump.

Filling a set of double 100s with 10/70 trimix should cost on the order of $185, not $500.

FWIW: gasfills
 
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Google has not been helpful as mostly it comes up with old news .....

Off topic but just a tip. Google search now has a filter that lets you set the date range.
Once you run your search look at the left side "more".
You can then set last week, month, year etc.
 
Like most everything, there is a lot more to the price of helium than just the cost of the commodity. State and local taxes, delivery charges and storage tank rentals are just a few of the extra charges that you are likely to encounter.
 
The secondary costs really aren't the problem. The problem is that the government is selling off the reserves at far below what the market would demand without artificially deflated prices. This is leading to usages that are frankly flippant.

Once the government reserves are depleted, the price is going to go through the roof. And the impacts on society in general, given the numerous uses of the gas, are going to be far more important in our lives than the impact on diving.
 

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