Silver’s role as a safe-haven investment and its industrial applications, particularly in solar panels, have driven up its value.
The rise in international silver prices has benefited Chilean silver exports. Despite lacking a dedicated silver industry, Chile was the fifth-largest producer globally in 2023, accounting for 5.5% of global output, according to Cochilco. Only Mexico (24.9%), China (13.9%), Peru (12.1%), and Poland (5.7%) produced more.
Silver prices have surged in recent months, driven largely by its safe-haven appeal, similar to gold. The metal reached a peak of US$34.31 per ounce on March 27, according to Handy & Harman data.
During the first quarter of 2025, silver averaged US$31.91 per Troy ounce, a 36% increase year-on-year from US$23.38 per ounce in the same period of 2024. While prices have risen notably in 2025, the 2024 average was already higher than in the previous three years. In fact, over the past five years, silver has outperformed gold in terms of price growth, according to The Economist.
Safe-Haven and Industrial Uses
“Silver is both a precious metal and an industrial commodity. As such, in addition to supply-demand fundamentals, a variety of exogenous factors influence its price, and their relative impact may vary over time,” says Álvaro Merino, Executive Director at Núcleo Minero.
Juan Carlos Guajardo, Executive Director of Plusmining, notes that part of the price rally is explained by silver’s role as a store of value. “It plays a role similar to gold. We’ve seen gold prices also rise sharply. The advantage of silver is that it democratizes access to safe-haven assets because its lower value makes it more accessible,” he explains.
Another key driver of higher prices is growing industrial demand. In 2023, 55% of silver demand came from industrial uses, followed by 20% from physical investment and 17% from jewelry, according to the Silver Institute. Among industrial applications, photovoltaic demand has seen the highest growth, with a 64% increase in 2023 compared to the previous year.
“Silver has important properties, such as high conductivity and strong antibacterial effects. It’s gaining traction in electric vehicle manufacturing, solar panels, and electrical circuits. This reinforces its value—not just from a financial standpoint, but also due to growing industrial demand,” Guajardo adds.
Exports
In 2024, silver exports from Chile totaled US$479 million FOB. In the first two months of 2025 alone, shipments reached US$92 million FOB, marking a 9.5% year-on-year increase. In 2023, silver exports amounted to US$512 million FOB. A decade ago, they totaled just US$211 million FOB.
Chile’s main silver export destinations are Canada, the United States, and Switzerland. In 2023, Canada imported US$222.5 million FOB in silver, the United States US$219.5 million, and Switzerland US$62.5 million.
Joaquín Villarino, Executive President of the Mining Council, explains that in Chile, silver is mainly produced as a byproduct of other metals, particularly copper. In fact, nearly 90% of the silver produced in Chile in 2023 originated from copper mining, according to Cochilco.
However, this hasn’t always been the case. In the mid-19th century, the Chañarcillo silver mine near Copiapó was the third-largest deposit in the Americas and marked the beginning of a period of prosperity for Chile—preceding the nitrate boom.
Refining
Villarino adds that silver is typically exported in concentrate form, as is the case with copper, to be refined abroad. It is also traded as high-purity bullion and as doré bars—gold-silver alloys—which also undergo further refining.
Guajardo emphasizes that Chile has the capacity to refine silver to a high-purity level. “There is a precious metals refinery in Chile capable of reaching that level of processing. This is not common—there are very few such industrial facilities globally. Chile has had this refinery for a relatively short time, which significantly improves the outlook for domestic silver processing,” he explains. In this context, Guajardo believes Chile has the potential to become a genuine “precious metals hub.” Furthermore, unlike copper, there is more informal mining activity in gold and silver, so this type of infrastructure will help enhance traceability in the sector.
Fuente: El Mercurio