As a precious metal, silver is often compared to gold, and holds an important role in the production of jewelry and as a safe haven investment. However, with increasing industrial uses its role continues to shift.
In addition to its use as jewelry and silverware, the white metal is becoming important for its use in the energy transition, specifically for its conductive capacity, making it particularly useful in the production of photovoltaic panels. It also has a wide array of uses in the production of electronics, automobiles, medicine and photography.
Despite its important role, silver is still largely a secondary metal, being mined as a by-product of lead, gold, zinc and copper. There are, however, several Australian companies who have put silver first.
Read on to discover the largest silver primary companies listed on the ASX. The stocks are sorted by market cap using data from TradingView’s stock screener on January 8, 2024.
1. Adriatic Metals (ASX:ADT)
Market cap: AU$1.07 billion; current share price: AU$3.60
Adriatic Metals is a precious and base metals developer working to advance its mining assets in South Central Europe.
Its Vareš mining project, located near Vareš, a historic mining town in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is currently under construction and as of September 13 construction was 88 percent complete and 94 percent funded. In its Q3 update on October 24 it noted that development of the underground mine had increased and the first ore drive was reached at the end of Q2 and was being stockpiled, with the first concentrate anticipated in January 2024.
Adriatic’s mining efforts at Vareš are focused on the Rupice deposit, for which the company released an ore reserves estimate on December 20. The estimate indicated an 18 year life of mine and reserves in the probable category of 83 million ounces of silver, 640,000 ounces of gold, 723,000 tonnes of zinc, 457,000 tonnes of lead, 64,000 tonnes of copper and 24,000 tonnes of antimony.
The first ore mined at Rupice was delivered and stockpiled on July 17, 2023, and according to its quarterly update released on October 24, the first concentrate production is anticipated in January 2024.
2. Silver Mines (ASX:SVL)
Market cap: AU$238.74 million; current share price: AU$0.16
Silver Mines is an advanced stage silver exploration and development company focused on its Bowdens silver project in Central New South Wales, 26 kilometres east of Mudgee.
Its Bowdens silver project comprises 2,115 square kilometres of titles, covers 80 kilometres of strike and represents the largest known undeveloped silver resource in Australia. In its most recent mineral resource estimate from March 2023, the company reported total measured, indicated and reserve amounts of 189 million ounces of silver and 190,000 ounces of gold.
The project was approved to proceed to the development and production stage in April. In its annual general meeting on November 30, the company noted it is currently working on a definitive feasibility study which it expects to be completed in early 2024 and that it expects to proceed to the development and production phase of the project in late 2024.
3. Investigator Resources (ASX:IVR)
Market cap: AU$55.43 million; current share price: AU$0.04
Investigator Resources is a polymetallic exploration and development company with assets throughout Australia and Tasmania. Its flagship property is the Paris silver project located on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula.
The most recent mineral resource estimate update released in July 2023, has increased the indicated and inferred resources to 57 million ounces of silver and 99,000 tonnes of lead with average grading of 73 g/t silver and 0.41 percent lead from 24 million tonnes. The company has referred to Paris as Australia’s highest grade primary silver project.
In the company’s pre-feasibility study for the project from November 2021, it indicated that the project could operate as a high-grade, near-surface open pit mine with a mine life of five to seven years. Investigator is working to produce a definitive feasibility study for release early this year.
The Paris project also hosts the Apollo silver deposit, which is 5 kilometres from the main zone. The company’s drilling at Apollo has also revealed high grades to Paris, including an interval grading 1,262 g/t silver over 8 meters in August 2022. In a June 7 announcement, Investigator noted that intersections and mineral, petrological and geologic observations support the belief that Apollo hosts the right conditions for “epithermal-type intermediate sulphidation silver-lead-zinc mineralisation.”
4. Unico Silver (ASX:USL)
Market cap: AU$37.01 million; current share price: AU$0.11
Formerly E2 Metals, the company changed its name in March 2023. It is focused on the development of assets in Santa Cruz in Southern Argentina.
Unico’s flagship project is Cerro Leon and consists of an 80 percent ownership of the Conserrat district through its ownership stake in Minera Los Domos and the Pingüino district acquired through from Austral Gold (ASX:AGD) in November 2022.
The consolidated land package is made up of five mining titles for a total of 18,662 hectares and hosts the second largest vein field in Santa Cruz, with mineralized veins combining for 115 kilometres of strike in the Pingüino district, along with an additional epithermal vein field that covers an area of 25 square kilometres in the Conserrat district.
In its most recent mineral resource estimate from May 2023, the company reported indicated and inferred resources of 40.9 million ounces of silver, 344,200 ounces of gold, 150,728 tonnes of zinc and 58,566 tonnes of lead.
5. Lode Resources (ASX:LDR)
Market cap: AU$10.15 million; current share price: AU$0.09
Lode Resources is a mineral exploration company focused on the development of assets within the New England Fold Belt. Its flagship property is the Webbs Consol silver-base metals project, located 16 kilometres southwest of Emmaville, New South Wales. The resource was originally discovered in 1890 and was mined until the mid-1950s.
The company has been exploring the property’s Tangoa West lode throughout 2023 and has delivered a series of high-grade results including 254 g/t silver over 116.1 metres, including 419 g/t over 41.4 metres, on February 1, and 389 g/t silver over 24.5 metres on May 18.
The company has continued to test the Tangoa West lode down to a depth of 450 metres. According to Lode Resources, the increasing depth has provided the company with greater confidence in the size and high value of the target and a better understanding of its scale.
The most recent update from the site came on October 9, when Lode reported assay results had revealed grading of 146 g/t silver over 27.7 metres. The company’s managing director said in the announcement that the assay results from the Tangoa West lode show the strong mineral endowment at Webbs Consol and indicate the potential for other lodes at the site, which he said all remain open. Lode is fully funded for its drilling program, which it began in November.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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