Former CEO of creditors-protected helium firm buys it with new company

By Medicine Hat News on July 12, 2025.

@MedicineHatNews

A regional helium producer that entered creditor protection early this year is being purchased by a firm run by its former chief executive.

Keranic Industrial Gas Inc. stated in late June that it has entered a binding agreement to acquire Royal Helium, its 600,000-acre land position in southern Saskatchewan and Alberta, as well as the Steveville processing plant north of Brooks.

Trouble commissioning that facility – which concentrates and purifies the valuable inert gas from two nearby Royal Wells – led the company to seek out court-creditors protection in January.

That came months after a board shakeup that saw CEO Andrew Davison leave Royal and subsequently form Keranic.

Following court hearings in late June, that company, also based in Saskatoon, announced that Keranic has entered a binding 60-day exclusivity agreement to combine the two, subject to Court of King’s Bench of Alberta approval.

“This exclusivity agreement sets the stage for a transformative opportunity,” said Davidson, described as the president and CEO of Keranic, in a company release. “We believe the combination of Royal Helium’s assets with Keranic’s industrial gas expertise and financial backing positions Keranic to be a leader within the Canadian helium sector and its next phase of growth.”

The release states the company will re-engage the Steveville plant’s original engineering firm to commission the plant within four months.

The company is also seeking listing on the Toronto Venture Stock exchange and says it has secured $9.4 million in new financing.

Royal has also advanced exploration on land it controls in the “Forty Mile” region of Alberta and the Climax area of Saskatchewan.

The company owed $18 million to creditors, according to court documents, though non-cash assets were deemed to be comparable.

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