Silver Supply Inadequate amid Monstrous Industrial & Investment Demand

By Jon Forrest Little

The initiative has many buzz phrases such as building a “just and inclusive” clean energy economy. The plan vilifies fossil fuels and glorifies “green energy” with sweeping statements asking “stakeholders to improve their ESG performance.”

The deficit is driven by various factors, including the growth of the solar and wind energy industries, which use silver in their components.

• The rising energy and labor costs involved in mining silver.
• The increasing environmental regulations on mining.
• Mexico just banned open-pit silver mining, and Mexico has historically been the world’s #1 silver-producing country.

So, we have the 1-2-3 punch of:

1. Rising demand (industrial and monetary use).
2. Restricted supply.
3. Increased FOMO (fear of missing out).

The U.S. military has been a massive user of silver for the past 50+ years.

Silver is used extensively in silver-zinc batteries for torpedo, missile, aerospace, and aircraft applications.

Silver is used by the defense industry for various purposes, including multiple weapon systems, bullets, shells, and missiles. It coats bullets and shells to improve their conductivity and reduce friction. It’s used to construct missiles to improve their guidance systems.

It’s also used in radar systems, night vision goggles, and communications equipment. Silver as a conductor in these devices improves their performance and reliability.

A few other worldwide defense industry battery manufacturers produce silver-zinc batteries, including EaglePicher Technologies, Saft Groupe, and Zenergize Technologies. These companies offer various silver-zinc batteries for different applications, but most are for warfare.

This all bodes well for physical silver prices, as needed supply becomes harder to produce.