Newsletter Writers
Top 10 Silver Producers of 2011 by Michelle Smith
Top 10 Silver Producers of 2011 by Michelle Smith
Exclusive to Silver Investing News
The Silver Institute has updated its silver production data to reflect 2011 results.
The top ten producers, as reflected by this data, are outlined below.
There was a surplus in the silver market in 2011 as overall mined supply of the white metal rose to 761.6 million ounces (m/oz).
However, silver produced from primary silver mines declined.
Though a new company stepped into the top spot last year, that rank is still not held by a primary silver miner.
KGHM Polska Miedz (OTC Pink:KGHPF,FWB:KGHA)
Silver production: 40.5 m/oz
Market cap: $9 billion
Based in Poland, KGHM is a major copper producer. In 2011, the company rose to the top of the silver producers list from the third place rank it held in 2010. KGHM’s operations include three mines in Poland. The company reports that on average only about 1.1 percent copper content is extracted from the Lubin mine, but the mine’s ore contains high silver content, averaging 65 grams per tonne.
BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP,LSE:BLT,ASX:BHP)
Silver production: 39 m/oz
Market cap: $99.93 billion
BHP is the world’s largest diversified resource company and in 2010 it was the world’s top silver producer.
Fot the rest of the list, click here.
