Silver is a precious metal with varied uses including making mirrors, in digital photography, in medicine, making jewellery, in currency, for storage of wealth and more. Here, we explore the top 10 countries that produce silver across the world.

10. Canada

Canada has several silver mining companies, and British Columbia
is home to large silver deposits that are yet to be mined. Despite that, Canada extracts a larger percentage of its top-notch silver from different polymetallic veins that don’t yield a lot of silver. Canada recorded a rise in silver production from 493 to 500 metric tonnes in 2015.

9. United States

The United States has been a silver producer since 1858. Currently, the top two states in the US for silver production are Nevada and Alaska. Approximately 40 other precious metal mining activities nationwide and three of the nation’s dedicated silver mines accounted for the majority of the 1,090 metric tons of silver produced in 2015. 1,100 metric tons were produced in the US in 2016. Coeur Mining is the biggest silver producer in the United States. Despite not being primarily focused on silver projects, Coeur manages mines producing silver in South America and Australia.

8. Bolivia

 

Bolivia’s output of silver stayed relatively stable at 1,300 metric tons in 2015 and 2016, but the nation’s silver industry still has potential to grow. There are numerous silver mines in Bolivia, particularly in the Potosi area. In addition, Sumitomo operates the San Cristobal mine, which has the third-largest silver deposit in the world.

7. Poland

Poland produced 1,400 metric tonnes in 2016, which was equal to Australia’s production. Compared to 2015, this represented a 220 metric tonne gain. One of the top manufacturers of silver in the world is Polka Meidsz, a Polish firm. According to a survey conducted by the Polish Silver Institute, increasing the number of mining enterprises in the nation can increase its production capacity.

6. Russia

Russia’s output sunk to 1,400 MT in 2016 from 1,430 MT in 2015. Although Russia’s silver reserves are not known, it has been among the top producers of silver for years. Polymetal International is Russia’s largest silver producer. The company dominates silver mining across Russia and operates four of the top five silver mines in the country. In 2016, Polymetal generated 7 million ounces – a 3 percent drop from 2015.

5. Australia

The amount of silver produced by Australia’s mines in 2016 was 1,400 metric tonnes, a minor decrease from 1,430 metric tonnes in 2015. Australia is now the world’s fifth-largest producer of silver as a result of that decline. Despite this, BHP Billiton began operating a silver mine in Australia in the 1920s, and the country has a long history of silver mining. Even now, BHP Billiton is a massive mining corporation with locations throughout several nations. It is the biggest producer of silver in Australia and runs the Cannington mine in Queensland, which produces more silver than any other mine in the country.

4. Chile

Chile takes the fourth position; it produced 1,500 metric tonnes in 2016 up from 1,380 metric tonnes in 2015. That rise catapulted Chile from the fifth to the fourth largest producer of silver in the world. In the next three years, Chile’s government has decided to raise production by creating new strategies and rolling out extraction plans that would be more cost effective and energy efficient.
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3. China

 

In 2002, China ranked fourth in the world for silver output, earning the moniker “solid mid-tier producer of silver.” Since then, China’s output has progressively climbed to take the third spot among the world’s leading producers of silver. In 2016, 3,600 metric tons of silver were produced in China. China’s other mining activities have contributed significantly to its development; in 2012, these projects accounted for about 95% of China’s silver production.

The biggest producer of silver in China is Silvercorp Metals. It announced the sale of 1.5 million ounces of silver on June 30, 2017, and it controls multiple mines throughout the nation.

2. Peru

Peru boasts some of the world’s greatest silver reserves in addition to being the second-largest producer, with an output of 4,100 metric tons in 2016. Peru has an enormous amount of undiscovered silver potential, with about 120,000 known metric tonnes, which might propel it up the global silver rankings in the future.

The Antamina mine, which is located in northern Peru, is the primary source of silver for Peru. BHP Billiton, Glencore, Mitsubishi, and Teck Resources all jointly own this mine. This mine is mostly a copper mine, albeit it produces more silver than other mines in Peru. Thus, silver is a byproduct of the mining of copper.

With two active mines, one in the region of Fortuna, Silver Mines is a rapidly expanding silver producer.

1. Mexico

Mexico has produced more silver than any other nation in the world for seven years running. Its production skyrocketed to 5,600 metric tonnes in 2016. This was 230 metric tonnes more than in 2015. Fresnillo, Mexico is home to the most productive silver companies in the world. Fresnillo operates six mines in Mexico where it produces gold and silver. It also has numerous other projects in various stages of development. Mexico produced 28.04 million ounces of silver by the end of June 2017, an increase of 11% over the amount produced in the first half of 2016.

Mexico is the leading silver producing country in the world and has maintained this position for 7 consecutive years. In 2016, its output shot to 5,600 metric tonnes. This was up by 230 metric tonnes from 2015. Fresnillo, the world’s most productive silver companies are located in Mexico. Fresnillo extracts gold and silver at six mines in Mexico and has many other projects at different phases of development. By the end of June 2017, Mexico had produced 28.04 million ounces of silver, which is an 11 percent increment from what it produced in the first half of 2016.

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