Helium One shares fell again on Monday after the company announced last week their operations in Tanzania had suffered a setback.

Helium explorer Helium One Global has suspended drilling at its Tai-3 well in Tanzania after a component failure occurred in the Predator 220 drilling rig on Wednesday evening last week.

Helium One shares were down 1% to 4.65p at the time of writing on Monday.

The necessary repairs will require mechanical parts to be brought in from outside the country, causing an estimated two-week delay before drilling can resume.

The rig malfunction happened just as Helium One was starting to drill the 8.5″ hole section, following the successful installation of 13 3/8″ casing. Prior to the failure, drilling had been on schedule and was expected to reach the target depth this weekend.

Once repaired, the company is confident drilling can restart per the original program. The Tai-3 well is Helium One’s first in Tanzania as it explores the potential for major helium resources in the country.

The Tanzania programme had been delayed earlier in the year after the company faced difficulties securing a drill rig.