Silver Miners' Production Growth & Millions Operating Cash Flow Amid Permitting Bottlenecks

• Silver producers are demonstrating strong operational performance with significant production increases, improved cost structures, and successful strategic financing arrangements that provide capital for growth and development projects across multiple jurisdictions.
• Global mine supply has contracted at a 0.9% compound annual growth rate since 2020 due to declining ore grades, depletion at mature operations, and permitting timelines that now average 7-10 years in primary jurisdictions, creating substantial barriers to new mine development.
• Active exploration programs continue delivering positive results with high-grade intercepts and resource expansion opportunities, while metallurgical breakthroughs are creating new revenue streams and transforming previously penalized elements into profit centers.
• The convergence of supply constraints, industrial demand growth, and institutional capital flows creates a multi-year structural deficit that represents a fundamental shift in silver's supply-demand dynamics rather than a temporary commodity rally.

The silver market is experiencing a fundamental transformation that presents compelling opportunities for investors. Multiple converging factors—from accelerating industrial demand to persistent supply constraints—are creating a structural deficit that appears positioned to persist for years. Recent corporate developments and financial results from leading silver producers provide concrete evidence of this shift, supported by record institutional capital flows and operational improvements across the sector.

The Industrial Revolution Driving Silver Demand

Global silver mine supply has contracted at a 0.9% compound annual growth rate since 2020, driven by declining ore grades and depletion at mature operations across major producing regions. The Fraser Institute reports that permitting timelines in primary jurisdictions now average 7-10 years, creating substantial barriers to new mine development and capacity expansion. The supply challenges extend beyond simple production numbers. Environmental and social considerations increasingly influence permitting decisions, making community engagement and ESG compliance critical success factors for development projects.

Electric vehicle manufacturing and 5G electronics infrastructure add incremental, non-cyclical demand pressure to an already tight market. These applications require silver's superior conductivity properties, creating price-inelastic consumption patterns that differ fundamentally from traditional industrial uses.

"You can definitely see the expanded investor interest in the metal and it's because silver sits at this crossroads of industrial growth and monetary anxiety, and we're seeing that play out with the gold price - silver starting to catch up with the gold ratio." - Vizsla Silver, CEO Michael Konnert

This industrial demand growth is occurring against a backdrop of supply constraints that are proving increasingly difficult to overcome. Long-term off-take contracts from manufacturers are tightening available spot market liquidity, contributing to increased price volatility during supply disruptions.

The supply constraint environment amplifies the strategic value of operational assets with existing infrastructure and established production profiles. The combination of declining grades, permitting delays, and geopolitical disruptions in key silver-producing regions has created a supply environment that appears increasingly unable to meet growing industrial demand.

Silver Miners Performance Demonstrates Sector Strength

Recent financial results from leading silver producers provide concrete evidence of operational improvements and strategic positioning.

Americas Gold and Silver achieved consolidated silver production of 689,000 ounces in Q2 2025, representing a 36% year-over-year increase and 54% quarter-over-quarter growth driven by operational improvements at the Galena Complex.

"During the first half of 2025, we've made significant progress and investments into our strategy to deliver materially increased silver production and lower costs over the coming years. Our teams have been strengthened and aligned in executing our operational growth plan at Galena and the transition from the San Rafael Mine to the higher grade silver-copper EC120 Project at Cosalá." - Americas Gold and Silver, Chairman & CEO Paul Andre Huet

Similarly, Silvercorp Metals demonstrated the sector's financial resilience, reporting adjusted net income of $21.0 million and cash flow from operating activities of $48.3 million for Q1 fiscal 2026. The company produced approximately 1.8 million ounces of silver while maintaining an all-in sustaining cost per ounce of silver, net of by-product credits, of $13.49.

Strategic Financings Enabling Growth

Multiple silver companies secured significant financing during recent months, demonstrating continued access to capital markets and investor confidence in the sector.

GR Silver Mining completed a $13.8 million bought deal offering strengthening its liquidity position for advancement of its Plomosas Silver Project in Mexico.

Marcio Fonseca, President & CEO of GR Silver Mining, stated:

"With the closing of this financing and the full exercise of the over-allotment option, GR Mining has strengthened its liquidity position. This capital gives us the ability to unlock the value of our Plomosas Project, by advancing the step-out resource expansion drilling program at the San Marcial Area focused on high-grade silver mineralization, and continuing the Bulk Sampling Test Mining activities at the historic Plomosas Underground Mine."

Americas Gold and Silver secured a $100 million senior secured term loan facility with SAF Group, receiving the first $50 million tranche in June 2025 to fund growth and development capital spending. This financing arrangement improved the company's liquidity profile, with cash and cash equivalents reaching $61.7 million as of June 30, 2025.

Santacruz Silver completed its BOB 140 million promissory note program through the Bolivian Stock Market, demonstrating access to local capital markets. Executive Chairman and CEO Arturo Préstamo noted:

"With the majority of our operations based in Bolivia, the offering reinforces our deep commitment to the country, where we continue to invest, expand and contribute meaningfully to the growth of the Bolivian mining sector, its communities and broader economic development."

Exploration Success Expands Resource Base

Active exploration programs continue to deliver positive results across multiple silver projects.

Outcrop Silver reported additional high-grade assay results from step-out drilling at the Los Mangos vein within the Santa Ana project in Colombia, with hole DH476 intercepting 2.11 metres grading 445 g/t silver and 2.14 g/t gold. Guillermo Hernandez, Vice President of Exploration at Outcrop Silver, commented:

"The results from hole DH476, especially the multiple high-grade intercepts at depth, reinforce the continuity and strength of the Los Mangos vein system. The northern shoot is evolving into an exciting mineralized zone, and the increasing structural complexity, coupled with intrusive-related controls, is opening new geological opportunities for deeper and lateral expansion."

Silver Tiger Metals advanced its exploration program on the prospective Northern Veins, located 2 kilometers north of the historic El Tigre Mine. Glenn Jessome, President & CEO, stated:

"The Northern Veins, a faulted off-set of the veins at the historic El Tigre Mine, show the same structure, mineralogy, grades and orientations, as the well-defined veins around the historic El Tigre Mine, on which our PFS and pending underground PEA are based."

Jurisdictional Advantages Support Investment Thesis

North American and select Latin American jurisdictions offer regulatory stability compared to higher-risk mining environments, providing operational certainty that institutional investors increasingly demand. Mexico's average timeline from discovery to production of approximately 8.5 years creates predictable development schedules for properly managed projects.

Vizsla Silver's Konnert emphasized the jurisdictional advantage:

"It really has to do with the jurisdiction in Mexico. Mexico gets a lot of knocks, but on average in Mexico, the amount of time it takes to go from discovery to production is about 8.5 years, so we're on track for that basically."

Environmental, social, and governance-forward models create social license strength that enhances long-term operational sustainability. Companies addressing community environmental concerns while generating economic returns align stakeholder interests in a manner that traditional mining models often struggle to achieve.

The Investment Thesis for Silver

• Macro Theme Exposure: Position for electrification trends through solar photovoltaic installations consuming 15% of annual silver supply and monetary diversification as institutional capital seeks real asset allocation amid currency concerns.
• Supply-Demand Fundamentals: Capitalize on the structural deficit created by stagnating mine supply (declining at -0.9% CAGR since 2020) against accelerating industrial demand from EV and electronics sectors.
• Quality Jurisdictional Exposure: Focus on companies operating in stable regulatory environments like Mexico (8.5-year average development timeline) and North America, providing operational certainty compared to higher-risk mining jurisdictions.
• Operational Leverage Opportunities: Target companies with existing infrastructure and low all-in sustaining costs, exemplified by projected costs of $9.40 per ounce against industry averages of $19.80 per ounce.
• Financial Strength Criteria: Prioritize companies with robust balance sheets, demonstrated by cash positions exceeding $200 million with no debt obligations and recent successful financing arrangements.
• Innovation and Value Creation: Seek exposure to metallurgical breakthroughs and secondary revenue streams, such as antimony recovery capabilities that transform penalty elements into profit centers.
• Development Timeline Alignment: Consider companies with production timelines coinciding with accelerating industrial demand, targeting first production by 2027 to capture sustained growth trends.
• Exploration Upside Potential: Evaluate companies with discovery costs below $0.50 per ounce and high-grade resources in established mining districts for organic growth opportunities.
• ETF and Index Inclusion: Monitor companies achieving inclusion in major silver indices for enhanced institutional exposure and liquidity benefits.
• ESG-Aligned Approaches: Consider companies addressing environmental remediation while generating returns, creating sustainable operational models with strong community support.

The convergence of accelerating industrial demand, persistent supply constraints, and record institutional capital flows creates a compelling multi-year investment opportunity in silver. The highlighted companies demonstrate operational excellence, financial strength, and strategic positioning that enables them to capitalize on the sector's favorable fundamentals.

For sophisticated investors, disciplined allocation strategies focused on high-quality silver assets offer attractive risk-adjusted return potential in an environment characterized by structural supply deficits and sustained demand growth. The combination of macro tailwinds, operational improvements, and strategic innovations across the sector suggests that the current cycle represents more than a temporary commodity rally, but rather a fundamental shift in silver's supply-demand dynamics that could persist for years.