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ASX Silver Stocks: 5 Biggest Companies in 2024
As the fifth largest silver producer in the world, Australia is home to a slew of silver-focused companies. Learn about the five biggest ASX silver stocks by market cap to help you decide which Australian silver companies to invest in.
The precious metal silver is often compared to gold, and is important in jewellery and as a safe haven.
Unlike gold, silver has many industrial applications too, including in electronics, automobiles, medicine and photography, and, of course, silverware. Energy transition applications are a growing demand sector for silver — the metal is valued for its conductive capacity, which makes it particularly useful in the production of photovoltaic panels.
Silver supply has tightened in recent years as industrial demand rises, and this was one of the factors that helped the silver price break through the US$30 per ounce mark in May for the first time since 2013.
Although silver has seen high volatility since then, falling below the US$27 per ounce mark in August, it once again gained momentum to trade near the US$32 mark.
These gains come on the heels of a 50 point rate cut by the US Federal Reserve on September 18 that improved investor sentiment in precious metals markets.
In this silver price environment, it's a good time to learn about the largest primary silver companies on the ASX. These ASX silver stocks are sorted by market cap, and data was gathered using TradingView’s stock screener on October 1, 2024.
1. Adriatic Metals (ASX:ADT)
Market cap: AU$1.14 billion
Share price: AU$3.50
Adriatic Metals is a precious and base metals miner in South-Central Europe that is now producing silver from the Rupice mine at its Vareš project, located near Vareš, a historic mining town in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In late February, Adriatic produced its first silver-lead concentrate and zinc concentrate at the Vareš processing plant.
Adriatic’s mining efforts at Vareš are focused on the Rupice deposit, for which it released an ore reserve estimate in December 2023. The estimate indicates an 18 year mine life and probable reserves 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.
In an update on September 23, Adriatic said it had achieved a milestone at the Rupice mine with the first stope entering production, bringing production to 25,514 tonnes of ore in August compared to 5,595 tonnes in July.
The company indicated that the mine is on track to ramp up to commercial production levels by the end of 2024.
2. Andean Silver (ASX:ASL)
Market cap: AU$174.19 million
Share price: AU$1.215
Andean Silver is a precious metals exploration and development company focused on advancing the Cerro Bayo silver and gold project in Southern Chile. The company took ownership of Cerro Bayo in early 2024.
The land package consists of 70 exploration concessions covering a total of 285 square kilometres and hosts a past-producing mine that was in operation for more than 15 years and produced 45 million ounces of silver and 650,000 ounces of gold before being placed on care and maintenance in 2022.
In its most recent mineral resource estimate for the project released on September 19, the company reported an 80 percent upgrade on silver equivalent ounces to 91 million at a grade of 342 grams per tonne (g/t) silver equivalent. The resource includes indicated and inferred quantities of 39 million ounces of silver and 628,000 ounces of gold from 8.2 million tonnes of ore with average grades of 146 g/t silver and 2.4 g/t of gold.
The company said it was engaged in a 12 month exploration strategy and has deployed two drilling rigs to the site. Its aggressive drilling program is focused on growing the Cerro Bayo resource and near-mine drilling targets as well as making new discoveries.
3. Silver Mines (ASX:SVL)
Market cap: AU$137.23 million
Share price: AU$0.091
Silver Mines is an advanced-stage silver exploration and development company focused on its Bowdens silver project, which is located in Central New South Wales, 26 kilometres east of Mudgee.
Bowdens is made up of 2,115 square kilometres of titles, covers 80 kilometres of strike and represents the largest-known undeveloped silver resource in Australia. In its latest resource estimate, released in March 2023, the company reported 169 million ounces of silver and 96,000 ounces of gold in the measured and indicated categories, with an additional inferred resource of 20 million ounces of silver and 96,000 ounces of gold.
The project was approved to proceed to the development and production stage in April 2023. However, the company faced a setback following an appeals court decision on August 18 that reversed earlier court proceedings and the development of the project was halted. In the release, the company said the appeal was primarily centered on the potential impact of transmission lines to provide electricity for the project.
In a subsequent announcement on August 20, Silver Mines said it was committed to the progression of the project and obtaining all relevant permits and development consents. Additionally, it reported that the optimization study for Bowdens was on track for completion by the end of the year and said it had the potential for operating with less environmental impact than the original 2018 feasibility study indicated.
4. Unico Silver (ASX:USL)
Market cap: AU$75.49 million
Share price: AU$0.220
Formerly known as E2 Metals, Unico Metals changed its name in March 2023. The company is focused on the development of assets in Southern Argentina, and its flagship project is Cerro Leon, which consists of two vein fields — the greenfield Conserrat project, in which Unico has an 80 percent stake, and the more advanced Pingüino project.
A May 2023 resource estimate for Cerro Leon outlines indicated and inferred resources of 40.9 million ounces of silver and 344,200 ounces of gold, as well as over 150,500 tonnes of zinc and 58,500 tonnes of lead.
On July 24, Unico completed a share purchase agreement to acquire a 100 percent interest in the Sierra Blanca silver-gold project from Austral Gold (ASX:AGD,OTCQB:AGLDF) and Capella Metals (TSXV:CMIL,OTCQB:CMILF). The acquisition will allow Unico to expand Cerro Leon and consolidate the Pingüino vein into a single entity.
Unico followed this acquisition with news on August 20 that it had entered into an agreement with Pan American Silver (TSX:PAAS,NYSE:PAAS) to purchase a 100 percent interest in the Joaquin and Cerro Puntundo projects. The projects are located 60 kilometres away from the company's Cerro Leon project, enhancing the overall scale and economics of the regional portfolio.
Under the terms of the deal, Unico will provide a US$2 million upfront acquisition cost with an additional payment of US$2 million on the publication of a feasibility study and US$8 million on first production from the site.
5. Investigator Resources (ASX:IVR)
Market cap: AU$58.79 million
Share price: AU$0.038
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 company has referred to Paris as Australia’s highest-grade undeveloped silver project.
In a July 2023 update, Investigator increased Paris' indicated and inferred resources to 57 million ounces of silver and 99,000 tonnes of lead with average grades of 73 grams per tonne (g/t) silver and 0.41 percent lead from 24 million tonnes.
A November 2021 prefeasibility study for the project shows it could operate as a high-grade, near-surface, open-pit mine with a life of five to seven years. Investigator is working to produce a definitive feasibility study for the project. That work includes a regional exploration program with 5,000 metres of drilling for which it released the first results in May of this year.
Paris also hosts the Apollo silver deposit, which is 5 kilometres from the main zone. The company's drilling at Apollo has revealed high grades, including an interval grading 1,262 g/t silver over 8 metres in August 2022.
On July 29, Investigator released its June quarterly activities report, in which it said it is working to advance a definitive feasibility study (DFS) for Paris. Investigator indicated that packages for the study are either substantially complete or nearing completion. In its 2024 annual report, the company reported that the DFS would be completed before December 2024.
Don't forget to follow us @INN_Australiafor real-time news updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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Dean has been writing in one form or another since penning stage plays in his youth. He is a graduate of both Emily Carr University and Simon Fraser University, with a BFA in photography and a BA in communications.
As a writer, Dean has traveled throughout BC and the Pacific Northwest covering cultural events, interviewing small business owners and working alongside fellow writers and photographers from publications like Rolling Stone Magazine, Spin and the Georgia Straight.
Dean has a keen interest in investing, and enjoys learning about the mining industry and better understanding the technical aspects of trading. In his spare time, Dean is an avid home chef, ponders the space-time continuum and makes his own cider. On weekends he can be found cycling the Seawall, exploring farmers markets or sampling the city’s local craft breweries.
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Dean has been writing in one form or another since penning stage plays in his youth. He is a graduate of both Emily Carr University and Simon Fraser University, with a BFA in photography and a BA in communications.
As a writer, Dean has traveled throughout BC and the Pacific Northwest covering cultural events, interviewing small business owners and working alongside fellow writers and photographers from publications like Rolling Stone Magazine, Spin and the Georgia Straight.
Dean has a keen interest in investing, and enjoys learning about the mining industry and better understanding the technical aspects of trading. In his spare time, Dean is an avid home chef, ponders the space-time continuum and makes his own cider. On weekends he can be found cycling the Seawall, exploring farmers markets or sampling the city’s local craft breweries.
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