The New Metals Standard: Silver Miners Mergers and Acquisitions 2026

12/12/2025

Many of you will have seen the news this week: “Silver has surged to over $63/oz”

In a market which has been undersupplied for the past 5 years, this price action should come as no surprise following November’s classification of silver as a critical mineral by the USGS. The ensuing stockpile, which has built up in the US over fears of a potential tariff, has compounded the shortage elsewhere, where regional stocks remain dislocated.

Spot silver prices opened on January 1^st at a bleak ~$29/oz and are now running >110% higher, outpacing gold at its October highs by 45%.

Global miners can feel the ground shifting beneath their feet and as previously discussed in our gold M&A article, have sought to acquire established high-grade deposits in safe jurisdictions, as opposed to investing in greenfield projects.

The result has been a boom in M&A – particularly in North America / Mexico – as larger companies snapped up junior producers and developers, often paying hefty premiums for high-quality silver assets.

Notable Silver Mining Deals in 2025

First Majestic Silver / Gatos Silver

In January 2025, First Majestic Silver (FMS) acquired Gatos Silver for ~$970 million. Announced in late 2024, this deal gave First Majestic 100% ownership of the Cerro Los Gatos mine in Chihuahua, Mexico – one of the world’s highest-grade new silver operations. Gatos Silver’s flagship mine (70% owned by Gatos, with 30% held by partner Dowa) produces silver along with zinc and lead.

The deal has significantly enhanced First Majestic’s production profile one year after announcing the deal.

FMS reported record Q3 production of 3.9 million silver ounces, 1.4 million of which was  attributed to silver production from Los Gatos, representing a 96% increase when compared to a total 2.0 million silver ounces produced in Q3 2024. 

The earlier deal had forecast an annual production of 15-16 million ounces of silver at all-in sustaining costs of US$18.00-US$20.00 per silver-equivalent ounce, which volume-wise one-year-on, they appear to be comfortably ramping up to meet.

The transaction was an all-stock deal, with stockholders of Gatos Silver receiving 2.55 First Majestic common shares for each Gatos share and cash in lieu of fractional shares outstanding - giving them ~38% ownership in the combined company.

This acquisition is part of a growing trend of consolidation in Mexico, where many rich silver deposits lie – First Majestic was willing to pay a premium price, ~2× NAV, underscoring the scarcity and strategic value of large silver assets.

Strategically, the Cerro Los Gatos mine complements First Majestic’s existing portfolio of Mexican silver mines. The mine is a long-life, high-grade operation that adds a projected ~6–8 million ounces of annual silver production, helping offset declining grades elsewhere in the portfolio. The deal also provided First Majestic with operational harmony in Mexico and greater scale to leverage the strong 2025 silver price environment. Notably, major shareholder Electrum Group (32% owner of Gatos) supported the takeover, enabling the deal to close smoothly in early 2025.

Coeur Mining / SilverCrest Metals

If you read our article on gold M&A, you will already know Coeur Mining is on a buyout streak.

Pre-dating their monster $7 billion USD merger of peers with New Gold announced in November 2025, one of the largest precious metals deal this year, Coeur had already de-risked and diversified its portfolio in the first quarter of 2025 by closing a landmark $1.7 billion USD all-stock acquisition of SilverCrest Metals.

SilverCrest’s prize asset was the Las Chispas mine in Sonora, Mexico – a low-cost, high-grade underground silver-gold mine that had recently begun commercial production (2022) and was ramping up output. Coeur, a U.S. based mid-tier precious metals miner, used its robust equity instead of cash to finance the takeover, offering shareholders 1.6022 Coeur shares per SilverCrest share (a ~22% premium to SilverCrest’s pre-deal price). Upon closing in late Q1 2025, Coeur shareholders owned ~63% and SilverCrest shareholders ~37% of the combined company.

The acquisition instantly bumped Coeur into the big league of global silver producers. By adding Las Chispas to its portfolio, Coeur’s annual silver production was initially projected to nearly double to around 20–21 million ounces in 2025, up from about 11 million ounces previously, with gold output also expected to rise as Las Chispas produces significant gold by-product. Following updated planning and integration work, Coeur refined its full year 2025 production guidance ranges, resulting in a 1% increase in the midpoint of expected full year gold production to 415,250 ounces and a 2% decrease in the midpoint of expected full year silver production to 18.1 million ounces. Whilst slightly below earlier forecasts, the increase has been meaningful and again suggests that volume-wise the ramp up is achievable.

Importantly, the deal will also bolster Coeur’s project pipeline: cash flows from Las Chispas will help fund the development of Coeur’s nearby Silvertip project in British Columbia. Overall, Coeur’s takeover of SilverCrest and later merger with New Gold exemplifies the 2025 trend of using robust equity valuations to secure valuable assets in safe jurisdictions – something we can expect to see more of in 2026 given the current market environment.

Pan American Silver / MAG Silver

Another major consolidation completed in 2025 was Pan American Silver’s acquisition of MAG Silver Corp. for ~$2.1 billion USD. Announced in May 2025 and completed by early September, the deal was a cash-and-stock transaction: MAG shareholders received $500 million USD in cash plus 0.755 Pan American shares per MAG share, equivalent to ~US$20.54/share. The rationale was clear – MAG’s primary asset is a 44% interest in the newly-producing Juanicipio silver mine in Zacatecas, Mexico (56% owned and operated by Fresnillo plc). Juanicipio is one of the richest silver discoveries in recent decades, slated to produce 12–15 million ounces of silver annually at low costs. By acquiring MAG, Pan American secures nearly half of this Tier-1 mine’s output.

In its most recent Q3 report, Pan American stated that:                                                             “Based on the results to date and the expected contribution from Juanicipio, the Company is increasing attributable silver production guidance for 2025 to be between 22.0 and 22.5 million ounces and decreasing Silver Segment AISC to be between $14.50 and $16.00 per ounce.” Q2 AISC for the silver segment were $19.69 per silver ounce, indicating a ~>20% reduced cost basis following the completion of the takeover. For Pan American Silver (already one of the world’s largest silver producers), the deal consolidates ownership of a flagship asset in a familiar jurisdiction. It adds substantial high-grade reserves and will further boost Pan American’s production profile once Juanicipio is fully ramped up. The acquisition also removes the complications of joint ownership for Pan American – although MAG was partnered with Fresnillo, Pan American’s takeover effectively gives it a significant stake in a world-class mine without having to explore or develop it from scratch. This move mirrors trends in the gold sector where majors have been buying out joint-venture partners to gain full control of mines (for example, Gold Fields buying out Gold Road’s 50% of the Gruyere mine).

MAG was acquired at ~2× its net asset value, again demonstrating that in this booming precious metal market, producers are willing to pay a meaningful premium for “proven” producing assets in stable locations, and in the context of existing silver mines and infrastructure – especially when they are in Mexico.

Contango ORE / Dolly Varden Silver

For readers which have followed the New Metals Standard from the outset, Dolly Varden was originally highlighted as a junior offering leverage to a high-grade emerging silver project.

On December 8^th, Dolly Varden Silver and Contango ORE announced a merger-of-equals to create a new North American high-grade, mid-tier silver and gold producer and developer. The all-share transaction, structured as a court-approved plan of arrangement, will see existing Dolly Varden and Contango shareholders each own ~50% of the combined company, which will be renamed Contango Silver & Gold. The pro forma market capitalisation is expected to be ~$812 million USD, and will likely warrant index inclusion, research coverage and institutional ownership. Management from both companies have highlighted the step-change that comes from combining their balance sheets, with more than US$100 million in cash, minimal debt and a pipeline of high-grade, relatively low-capex projects in established mining jurisdictions.

Contango ORE contributes a producing interest in the Manh Choh gold mine in Alaska (a 30% joint venture with Kinross) together with the advanced Lucky Shot and Johnson Tract gold projects, also in Alaska. Dolly Varden contributes the high-grade Kitsault Valley. A district-scale silver-gold project in BC’s Golden Triangle, hosting ~47 million ounces indicated and ~90 million ounces inferred silver-equivalent resources, anchored by past-producing high-grade silver mines and the gold-rich Homestake Ridge deposits. It offers the type of scalable, Tier-1 jurisdiction inventory that larger precious metals producers have been targeting in the current M&A cycle.

Both companies follow a similar “Direct Shipping Ore” approach, targeting high-grade material that circumvents the need for costly processing facilities that other lower grade ores necessitate. The Dolly Varden-Contango transaction if approved will sit squarely within the broader trend of junior precious metals companies joining forces to reach a scale and diversification that is difficult to achieve independently.

2026 Takeover Candidates

Avino S&G Mines (Avino & La Preciosa, Durango, Mexico) – TSX/NYSE American: ASM

Possible bidder: Hecla (HL), Peñoles

Silver was first discovered at Avino in Durango, Mexico, in the mid-1500s, and by 1908 the property had become one of the largest open-cut silver mines in the world before operations ceased in 1912 during the Mexican Revolution. Modern redevelopment began in 1968 under Canadian ownership, with production resuming in 1974 and continuing through to 2001, during which time the mine produced more than 16 million ounces of silver, 96,000 ounces of gold and significant copper. Avino Silver & Gold Mines Ltd consolidated full ownership in 2006 and rebuilt the operation into a modern underground mine and mill. In the current cycle, the Avino Mine and the adjacent La Preciosa project produced approximately 2.65 million silver-equivalent ounces in 2024, with guidance of 2.5–2.8 million silver-equivalent ounces in 2025, forming the foundation of Avino’s district-scale growth strategy in Durango.

La Preciosa, acquired from Coeur in 2022, hosts a large undeveloped primary silver resource and lies roughly 19 km from the Avino mill, which has 2,500 tpd of installed capacity. The addition lifted Avino’s consolidated NI 43‑101 mineral resources to ~371 million AgEq ounces across its district‑scale land package. In early 2025 Avino received all permits and commenced underground development at La Preciosa. For 2025 the company plans to process 700,000–750,000 tonnes from Avino and La Preciosa, targeting 2.5–2.8 million AgEq ounces of production, and entering the year with a clean balance sheet and growing cash position (approximately $26 million USD cash and no debt at 2024 year‑end, rising to ~$57 million USD cash by Q3 2025).

Hecla, already the largest silver producer in the United States, has been explicit about using targeted acquisitions to grow its North American silver reserve base. The company has a long operating history in Durango through its San Sebastian silver‑gold mine (Green), which produced more than 23.6 million ounces of silver between 2001–2005 and 2015–2020 and remains an active exploration district within Hecla’s portfolio. Combined with a recent M&A track record that includes acquiring Alexco to become Canada’s largest silver producer, Hecla has shown a clear preference for building regional hubs around high‑grade silver assets in jurisdictions it knows well.

Avino’s Avino-La Preciosa cluster (Blue) in Durango – a mere 50km away – offers exactly that sort of hub. The company controls a producing mine, a permitted mill and an enormous undeveloped primary silver deposit all within trucking distance of each other, now 100 percent owned with royalties bought down and underground development under way. Avino screens as a logical consolidation candidate for Hecla: a ready‑made Durango platform that could re‑establish Hecla’s operating presence in Mexico and add a pipeline of higher‑grade La Preciosa ore to complement its existing North American portfolio.

Endeavour Silver (Mexico) - NYSE: EXK, TSX: EDR

Possible bidders: Pan American Silver (PAAS), Agnico Eagle (AEM)

Endeavour has spent the past cycle reshaping itself from a two-mine Mexican producer into a growth-led, multi-asset silver platform. The key inflection point is Terronera in Jalisco, which reached commercial production effective 1^st October 2025, following a commissioning phase that ramped operations to consistently exceed 90% of nameplate capacity at 2,000 tonnes per day and at least 90% of projected metal recoveries. In parallel, Endeavour’s 2025 guidance for its established Guanaceví and Bolañitos mines calls for 4.5 to 5.2 million ounces of silver and 30,500 to 34,000 ounces of gold, or 7.0 to 7.9 million ounces AgEq, with management positioning Terronera as the catalyst for its next step up in scale.

In late November 2025, Endeavour Silver Corp. agreed to sell its Bolañitos gold-silver mine in Guanajuato, Mexico, to Guanajuato Silver Company Ltd. for ~$50 million USD in total consideration, ~$30 million USD in cash, ~$10 million USD in equity at closing, and ~$10 million USD in contingent payments tied to future production milestones. The transaction is expected to close in January 2026, subject to customary approvals. Bolañitos has been part of Endeavour’s portfolio since 2007 and sits in the historic Guanajuato mining district, the second largest silver camp in Mexico. The operation produced ~450,000 ounces of silver and 25,000 ounces of gold in 2024 and contributed ~2.5 million AgEq ounces to the company’s production profile.

Management described the sale as part of a portfolio rationalisation strategy, freeing up capital and management attention to focus on higher-impact projects such as the newly commissioned Terronera mine in Jalisco – indicating they are in need of cash to fully deliver on their future mining objectives.

For Pan American, the strategic logic is straightforward reserve and production replacement in a jurisdiction it already understands. Pan American’s Dolores operation has already moved into wind-down, with mining from known ore reserves completed in Q3 2024, followed by completion of low-grade stockpile processing in Q1 2025 and a transition into residual leaching that is expected to run through end-2026. Acquiring Endeavour would provide a clear path to replacing Mexico-based silver and gold ounces through a mix of near-term production and a newly commissioned growth asset, rather than starting again at the discovery stage. 

For Agnico Eagle, the driver is planning ahead. Agnico states that under current mine plans, Pinos Altos is expected to remain in production through 2028. That timeline starts putting pressure on regional optionality now – Pan American secured a stakehold in Juanicipio making Dolores less of a concern – Agnico is yet to find a future core asset to replace Pinos Altos if it is to continue operations in Mexico. Endeavour offers a ready-made Mexican operating footprint with a new mine already commissioned, plus an exploration and development pipeline that Endeavour itself highlights as the next source of organic growth.

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