Charted: The Cost of Producing Silver, by Region (2021-2023)
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The Cost of Mining Silver by Region, 2021–2023
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In this visualization, we look at how much it cost to mine an ounce of silver in five world regions based on data from the 2024 World Silver Survey.
How Much Does it Cost to Mine an Ounce of Silver?
Below we break down regional costs for the years 2021, 2022, and 2023, using two measures:
Total cash costs (TCC) include all direct and indirect costs incurred during the physical process of mining the silver.
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) include all cash costs, as well as capital costs, corporate and administrative expenses, and the cost of exploration.
| Region | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| North America | |||
| Total Cash Costs | $4.72 | $5.28 | $9.14 |
| All-in Sustaining Costs | $14.09 | $15.52 | $19.44 |
| Central & South America | |||
| Total Cash Costs | $7.27 | $7.46 | $7.11 |
| All-in Sustaining Costs | $13.07 | $14.28 | $14.55 |
| Commonwealth of Independent States | |||
| Total Cash Costs | $5.71 | $9.10 | $12.93 |
| All-in Sustaining Costs | $8.93 | $12.88 | $17.05 |
| Asia | |||
| Total Cash Costs | -$0.32 | $0.14 | $0.56 |
| All-in Sustaining Costs | $6.09 | $7.49 | $8.91 |
| Oceania | |||
| Total Cash Costs | -$6.52 | -$5.12 | $3.34 |
| All-in Sustaining Costs | -$2.90 | $1.45 | $9.81 |
Source: World Silver Report, 2024 | USD per ounce silver on a by-product accounting basis | Direct mining costs = Total cash costs (TCC) | All other costs associated with mining = All-in-sustaining costs (AISC)
Silver Production by Region
North American average production costs rose for the fourth year in a row, to $9.14 in TCC and $19.44 in AISC, driven in part by the appreciation of the Mexican peso against the U.S. dollar and high inflation. In 2023, local inflation in Mexico eased to 5.5%, and to 4.1% in the U.S., which is still above the historical average.
In 2023, Central and South America was home to the third, fourth, fifth, and tenth largest producing countries, Peru, Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina, respectively. Regionally, costs were almost flat year-over-year, as ameliorating inflation was offset by strengthening exchange rates, including the Peruvian sol.
In the land down under, easing inflation and a weakening of the Australian dollar against its U.S. counterpart increased cash costs and AISC above zero. Lead and zinc by-product revenues often help offset silver costs, sometimes even turning them “negative” as they were in 2021.
The data for this visualization was sourced from the World Silver Survey 2024, a publication by one of our data partners, The Silver Institute. Our data partnerships are commercial agreements that may or may not include compensation, and partners are not involved with our editorial or graphical processes in any capacity.
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