Precious metals are naturally occurring commodities with high monetary value due to their rarity, durability, and intrinsic properties.
The best known are gold and silver, which are also known as coinage metals. Both have industrial uses but are more recognised for being used in jewellery, art, and of course coins (currency).
Other precious metals are the platinum group metals (also referred to as platinum group elements), which include iridium, palladium, platinum, osmium, rhodium, and ruthenium.
In part one of this feature series, Mining.com.au drills deep inside the ebbs and flows of the silver market, uncovering emerging trends and the silver surfers unlocking value around the world.
While gold has historically often served as a monetary standard, with its convertibility and stability long making it a pillar of global economies, silver is also used as currency but its industrial and medical applications create constant demand that distinguishes it from its yellow metal cousin.
Interestingly, The Royal Mint states that silver has never achieved more than one-tenth of the value of gold.
A major reason for this price weakness is, despite its rarity, in part silver is recovered as a byproduct of lead, copper, and zinc mining. This means output often exceeds what might have been mined on the basis of demand alone.
The Silver Institute says 2024 was an exceptionally good year for silver. Its price saw a 21% intrayear increase and an impressive 59% trough-to-peak rally, while the annual average rose by over a fifth to its highest since 2012.
Sentiment turned positive towards the precious metal among institutional investors, which The Silver Institute says is a “contrast to 2022-23 when they largely shunned the white metal”. This improving appetite was particularly noticeable in the futures markets, as silver’s decent price gains, along with rising volatility, boosted short-term speculative interest
“For the near future, we believe that conditions will remain positive for silver,” The Silver Institute reports.
In 2024, producers boosted global silver output by 0.9% to almost 820 million ounces. This was underpinned by increased output from lead and zinc mines in Australia and supply recovery from Mexico.
Output was supplemented by additional growth from Bolivia and the US although lower output from Chile (down 8.8 million ounces year-on-year) partially offset this growth.
Silver production from lead and zinc mines remains the dominant source of silver but in contrast, 2024 silver production from gold mines recorded a three-year high, up 12% to 13.9 million ounces.
Mexico in 2024 remained the leading silver mine-producing country, followed by China, Peru, Bolivia, and Chile. However, Australia, the Americas, and Canada in particular are presenting golden waves of opportunity for silver-focused mining companies in 2025 and beyond.
These opportunities come on the back of silver’s surging price. While it has experienced its share of fluctuations and is more frequently subject to demonetisation, the metal was a top performer in 2024, at one point beating gold’s advance with a 50% rally.
In July 2025, the commodity hit its highest price crest since August 2011. At the time of writing the silver spot price was sitting at about US$38 ($58.50) per troy ounce.
Silver surfers
In January this year, Impact Minerals (ASX:IPT) Managing Director Mike Jones outlined to this news service how there is a genuine supply shortage of silver. Jones views the underlying fundamentals for the metal from an industrial use perspective as “pretty good”.
Silver is benefiting from growing industrial demand, driven largely from electronics, renewable energy, and the medical sectors. As Mining.com.au previously reported, Canadian juniors are amongst the growing number of explorers jumping on the silver wave as the precious metal touches new peaks in terms of pricing and demand.
Major attractions of silver is its lower unit price in comparison to gold, which allows investors on modest budgets to build a tangible store of value. Additionally, it offers diversification to investment portfolios given its applications are in sectors somewhat independent of movement in the gold market.
And silver is found in diverse locations all over the world.
While best known for its gold mining history, the Yukon region of Canada is a literal gold mine for precious metals, including silver.
According to Canada Action, from 1896 to 1899 almost C$30 million ($33.50 million) in gold was extracted from the Yukon territory. As a result of this economic success, Dawson City became the largest city west of Winnipeg and north of Seattle.
Although the Klondike rush has long passed many prospectors today still find success within Yukon’s mining industry. Gold, copper, lead, silver, and zinc are just some of the minerals and metals actively mined in the region.
Keno Hill in particular is a district known for its high-grade deposits, having historically produced more than 220 million ounces of silver. It is considered one of the richest silver-lead-zinc districts ever mined.
Yukon Government production statistics show that 4.87 million tonnes was mined between 1913 and 1989 alone at an average grade of 1,389 grams per tonne silver, 5.62% lead, and 3.14% zinc.
Recently speaking to Mining.com.au, Silver North Resources (TSX-V:SNAG) CEO Jason Weber highlights how Keno Hill is one of the highest grade silver producing regions in North America. The CEO notes despite its long history, the potential for new vein discoveries remains.
“Silver North benefits from the knowledge gained over the 100-plus years of exploration within the district, but also enjoys a strong relationship with Hecla’s exploration team,” Weber says.
Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) is a US$5 billion market capitalisation behemoth that expects to produce up to 3.1 million ounces of silver from Silver North’s Keno Hill operations in 2025, as reported.
Weber says such is Hecla’s presence in the region, Silver North’s Keno mines is an attractive proposition regarding any potential acquisition of resources that it may yet define.
Silver North cumulatively has more than 12km of vein strike potential in the different structures it has identified with its recent Main Fault discovery including three veins over a 28.4m intersection.
Riding the silver wave
North America broadly is emerging as a hotspot for silver M&A deals as precious metals-focused companies seek to add to their portfolios.
One recent example is the Eric Sprott-backed Silver47 Exploration (TSX-V:AGA), which in early August 2025 completed its merger with Summa Silver (TSX-V:SSVR).
The company is continuing operations under its name with an expanded portfolio of silver assets spanning the US. Silver47 has since delisted from the TSX Venture Exchange.
CEO Galen McNamara says the merger presents Silver47 as a premier silver player in North America.
“Uniting projects in Alaska, Nevada, and New Mexico cumulatively hosting well over 200 million silver equivalent ounces with clear upside potential, we’re poised to benefit from a renewed interest in US mineral development at a time when the importance of domestic production has returned to the national spotlight,” the CEO says.
“Uniting projects in Alaska, Nevada, and New Mexico cumulatively hosting well over 200 million silver equivalent ounces with clear upside potential, we’re poised to benefit from a renewed interest in US mineral development”
On the back of recently acquiring the Broken Hills and Caisson projects in Nevada, US, Renegade Exploration (ASX:RNX) has started field exploration programs to follow up on previously reported high-grade gold and silver rock chip results.
Renegade Chairman Robert Kirtlan says the company has been locating historical geophysical data and other geological records since the acquisition.
The company’s Nevada-based geologist is on the ground looking to complement, understand, and expand existing data sets to establish drill targets.
“Both projects are within the Walker Lane Trend, a geological corridor along the California-Nevada border, which is experiencing a resurgence in interest driven by recent discoveries, a strong precious metals market, and growth in demand for metal supply,” Kirtlan says.
The Broken Hills Project is targeting epithermal gold-silver mineralisation similar to nearby mines including the Rawhide Mine, which has produced more than 1.96 million gold equivalent ounces since 1990, and the Paradise Peak Mine which produced 1.6Moz of gold between 1986 and 1994.
Prospects within Broken Hills have samples with more than 1,000g/t silver and more than 16g/t gold.
Mexican wave
In Mexico, Starcore International Mines (TSX:SAM) has a 10-year lease covering the claims and the historical mine comprising the Tortilla Project.
The asset has mining activity dating from 1557 and is located 150km from Santiago de Queretaro. Operations were originally conducted under Spanish control until 1870 – named the El Doctor Mine – before British company O.J. Braniff resumed activities in the late 1800s.
CEO Robert Eadie says Starcore has achieved its corporate targets throughout July and the “future is unfolding quickly with incredible potential”.
“Although there are no historical production records, based on the size of the old mine sites and average ore grades, we believe we have an excellent opportunity to capitalise on the untapped potential of the Tortilla Project and the attractive price of silver which has been steadily increasing for years,” Eadie says.
As reported by this news service, the company entered a non-binding letter of intent to lease the project for a 10-year period, covering six mineral claims and two properties.
“We believe we have an excellent opportunity to capitalise on the untapped potential of the Tortilla Project and the attractive price of silver which has been steadily increasing for years”
Since involving itself with the mining lease, Starcore has backed itself with carbon-in-leach processing to recover minerals from the San Martin mine, while issuing shares in EU Gold Mining to shareholders for its spinout in Ivory Coast, West Africa.
Meanwhile in late July, iMetal Resources (TSX-V:IMR) entered into a non-binding letter of intent to acquire an antimony-silver-zinc mining concession in the Fojnica municipality of Bosnia.
The Cemernica Mine hosts a historical estimate of 305,000 tonnes @ 4.05% antimony, 6% zinc, and 112 grams per tonne silver.
In an exclusive interview with Mining.com.au, CEO Saf Dhillon says iMetal has been trading out its ‘shell value’ and as a result has had various projects presented to it internationally – with Cemernica being one.
“And this one was brought to our attention through, I guess you could say, a friend to the company,” Dhillon says, adding this antimony-silver-zinc asset could dramatically reshape iMetal’s global profile and diversify its critical metals exposure.
With 60 days to come to a definitive agreement, iMetal is conducting due diligence and possibly a site tour. An independent geologist is already visiting the property to undertake some sampling.
“Those samples are currently in the lab and we’re just awaiting those assays and going over the historical data. But what this potentially could do for the company is, obviously put us on an international map,” Dhillon adds.
Silver lining in South America
In South America, Unico Silver (ASX:USL) holds a significant portfolio of exploration properties in Santa Cruz province, Argentina. It’s a region well known for its multi-million-ounce gold and silver epithermal vein deposits.
Managing Director Todd Williams remains confident in upgrading resource classification at the La Negra prospect, which is part of the Joaquin Project.
Unico is aiming to convert Joaquin’s 2013 foreign estimate into a JORC-compliant resource, as well as deliver a maiden resource at the Breccia Puntundo and La Negra prospects.
The June quarter marked a major step forward in Unico’s transition from explorer to developer with nearly 20,000m drilled across Cerro Leon and Joaquin, delivering two new discoveries along the way.
Williams says as Q3 2025 progresses, resource work is already advanced but the pace of discovery shows upside for a further MRE early 2026 – “which speaks to the geological potential of the portfolio”.
The Cerro Leon Project is in the central Deseado Massif geological province, 45km northwest of AngloGold Ashanti’s (NYSE:AU) Cerro Vanguardia mine.
In June, Cerro Leon returned the highest silver intercept to date at the Marta Norte prospect, recording up to 1,839 grams per tonne silver.
Also in South America, Aguia Resources (ASX:AGR) in January conducted the first gold and silver pour through the existing plant as part of the Santa Barbara Project recommissioning in Colombia.
Executive Chairman Warwick Grigor has been singing the company’s praises since, noting that following the take over of Andean Mining six months earlier, Aguia has recommissioned the 30-tonne-per-day pilot plant, as well as achieved first pour.
“Achieving this milestone on capital expenditure of less than $2 million so far should be very pleasing,” Grigor says.
The company began underground mining in early December 2024 with processing of the development material starting thereafter. The company expects to receive assay results from drillhole SB-25-06 and 07 in August 2025.
Surfing the silver shoulder
North America is not the only region to experience M&A or a hive of exploration activity in the silver space.
In Queensland, Iltani Resources (ASX:ILT) in August 2025 achieved a maiden resource for its Orient West silver-indium deposit and is following it up with an initial resource for the Orient East prospect.
The maiden JORC mineral resource estimate is 21.6 million tonnes @ 100.5 grams per tonne silver equivalent with 18.7Moz contained silver.
Managing Director Donald Garner believes that Orient could be the “largest and highest-grade” known silver-indium deposit in Australia, telling Mining.com.au Iltani has delivered the Orient West resource within just two years of listing.
“So, it highlights for us, we’ve done what we said we’d do,” he says.
“We don’t know how big the Orient system is. You know, Orient West could be 10, 20%, 30% of the overall project. We just don’t know yet. We’ll have a better idea once we’ve got the resource done for Orient East, then we can look at the potential throughout the rest of the system.”
Both Orient prospects are part of the 340km2 Herberton Project in northern Queensland and host epithermal mineralisation comprising silver, lead, zinc, and indium.
In late July, Rapid Critical Metals (ASX:RCM) acquired Silver Metals Group’s wholly owned subsidiaries Conrad Resources and Webbs Resources for $6.5 million, adding two silver projects in New South Wales to its portfolio.
The company now owns the Conrad and Webbs projects in the New England Fold Belt of New South Wales, which has a combined 34.9 million silver-equivalent ounces.
Write to Adam Orlando at Mining.com.au
Images: Stock, Unico Silver, Starcore & Silver Institute
