It is commonly known as the medal received for coming in second, but currently silver seems to be running a race of its own.
Over the past 12 months the precious metal has been one of the biggest movers in the commodity market, with its value more than doubling and increasing at a rate faster than gold.
While silver is commonly associated with jewellery due to its malleability and shine, the metal is also known as a good conductor of electricity. Almost all electrical appliances use silver contacts and switches. Microwaves, dishwashers, TVs, telephones, toys and computers all contain silver.
However, more recently the metal is used in solar cells where it helps to conduct sunlight into electricity.
Perth Mint Institutions and Business Solutions General Manager John O’Donoghue said silver had seen a significant rally over the past 12 months, supported by growing investor demand and strong industrial consumption.
“From a price perspective, silver finished December 2024 at $46.50 (AUD) an ounce and 12 months on, in December 2025, it fetched more than $100 an ounce and is currently priced around $168 an ounce,” he said.
“It’s been an extraordinary time for the precious metals market with gold and silver prices setting new records almost daily.
“Gold was up more than 50 per cent in Australian dollar terms in the year to 31 December 2025, and silver rose more than 130 per cent for the year. That momentum has continued into 2026.”
O’Donoghue said the higher price for silver has been driven by many of the same factors influencing recent rise in the gold price.
“That is, global economic uncertainty and geopolitical instability which continues to support safe-haven buying.
“Coupled with this is strong industrial demand for silver given its use in electric vehicles, photovoltaics and other technologies.
“We are also seeing elements of momentum‑based or ‘FOMO’ trading in the market.
“When prices rise quickly, some investors feel compelled to enter the market to avoid missing out on further gains, and that additional demand can amplify the upward movement.”
In Western Australia, silver is way down on the list of major mining exports, outweighed by the traditional resources including iron ore, copper, natural gas and gold.
According to the most recent available data from the Department of Mining, Petroleum and Exploration, quarterly production of silver peaked in terms of value in the three months ending in December of 2021, when the metal brought the state $46.43 million from 46.32 tonnes.
That compares to the December quarter last year when just 27.89 tonnes of silver brought in $45.35 million to the state.
WA School of Mines Chair of Extractive Metallurgy Professor Jacques Eksteen said while silver often holds a stronger value than other metals, it is predominantly mined as a by-product.
“Silver is normally a by-product of base metal mining and sometimes gold mines,” he said.
“It is seldom the dominant metal (in quantity) of a given mine, although it may lead in value.”
Eksteen added that WA is not widely known for large silver deposits and the precious metal is more commonly found in Queensland.
“The most important silver mine in Australia is the Cannington silver-lead-zinc mine in Queensland and is owned by South32,” he said.
“Silver recovery is non-trivial due to a complex chemistry and reagent requirement to maintain it stable in solution.
“It has a wide diversity in forms of mineralisation, but where it is associated with lead and zinc. It can be fairly easily recovered as a sulfide concentrate using flotation which then is processed further at a refinery using predominantly high-temperature processes.
While the majority of silver mined in WA comes as a by-product from other base metal operations, Dr ALex Walker, a research fellow at John de Laeter Centre in Curtin University, said there were two sites in the state that were exploring the extraction of silver as a primary ore.
“Elizabeth Hill operated until 2000 when the silver price dropped below US$5 per ounce,” he said.
“Hosting bonanza-grade silver, gravity separation was used to concentrate the native silver.
“It and the surrounding tenement space is now occupied by West Coast Silver which is busy establishing the extent of mineralisation beyond the historic workings. The company is collaborating with Curtin to characterise the silver mineralisation.”
According to West Coast Silver, the Elizabeth Hill operation, based in the Pilbara, has a proven history of silver production. Between 1998 and 2000, the mine produced 1.2 million ounces of silver from just 16,830 tonnes of ore, achieving a head grade of 2194 grams per tonne.
The other major silver producer is the Abra silver-lead mine, about 200km north-west of Meekatharra, which Walker said was also working with Curtin University.
“The Abra silver-lead mine, now owned and operated by Endurance Mining, has historically been heavy on lead extraction,” he said.
“Endurance is leaning into exploring silver deportment in the deposit in collaboration with Curtin University.”
O’Donoghue said the rise in the value of silver had seen customers take the opportunity to cash out of their silver holdings and realise gains.
“Elevated prices typically encourage investors to rebalance their holdings, and that’s evident from the activity we’re seeing,” he said.
“The Perth Mint purchases silver bullion from customers. Unlike gold, we don’t purchase silver jewellery.”
O’Donoghue said the enormous demand for precious metals, and in particular silver bullion products, has resulted in unprecedented logistical and production challenges for the Mint to meet the volume of orders it is receiving, meaning it has had to limit the availability of some silver products.
“We know this is disappointing for our customers. We’re working hard to meet the surge while maintaining the highest standards for precision and quality,” he said.
“Our inspection, packing and dispatching processes are highly manual. Every coin, bar and numismatic product is individually inspected, and items require careful handling as they are placed into sleeves, tubes or boxes.
“We’re increasing staffing to speed up these processes and thank customers for their patience.”