Helium shortage stops sales of Mickey balloon

TOKYO - Agence France-Presse

The popular Mickey balloons were withdrawn from sale last week in Tokyo. AFP photo

Tokyo Disneyland has stopped selling helium balloons shaped like Mickey Mouse and other characters because of a worldwide shortage of the lighter-than-air gas, the park’s operator said yesterday.

The popular balloons were withdrawn from sale last week, a spokesman said, because the company was having difficulty securing a stable supply.

“Delivery of our orders cannot be fulfilled” because suppliers are finding it difficult to obtain the gas, said an official at Oriental Land Co, which operates Disneyland. Helium comes from a relatively small number of natural gasfields. The gas is mainly used as an industrial and medical coolant, particularly for MRI scanners.

The global helium shortage has been a problem among MRI manufacturers for the past few years but has become more acute over the last few months, the Nikkei newspaper said yesterday.

Growing demand for the gas for use in MRIs and the IT sector, as well as difficulties at a production site in the United States, are to blame for the paucity.