There are few phrases that carry the weight of accomplishment in the junior mining world quite like “commercial shipment.” For Silver Bullet Mines Corp. (TSXV: SBMI | OTCQB: SBMCF), it’s not just a milestone—it’s validation. As Director and VP of Capital Markets Peter Clausi put it in a recent conversation with InvestorNews.com host Tracy Hughes, “There’s been a lot of work getting to this point, and it’s a good reward for the shareholders.”
The company’s October 24 announcement confirmed shipment of its first commercial quantity of gold and silver concentrate from the KT Mine in Arizona—an event Clausi described as “monumental.” The product has already been picked up for transport, marking the beginning of what the company expects will be regular scheduled shipments. “This represents significant revenue to the company,” Clausi reiterated, although he added that the exact numbers—tonnage, grade, and dollar value—remain confidential under the terms of the agreement with the buyer. “We’d love to disclose all the details to the investing public; we just can’t right now, and so we won’t.”
It’s not just about this single load of concentrate. Silver Bullet Mines is moving from exploration to sustained production, with two mines contributing material. “We have concentrate from the KT Mine and from the SC Mine,” Clausi explained. “This shipment is the gold-silver concentrate from the KT Mine. With respect to the material from the SC Mine, we’re still waiting—frustratingly so—on the third-party independent assay results on the silver concentrate. Once we have that, there’ll be another sale announced.”
But the path to cash flow is rarely straight. Clausi pointed to a global backlog in assay laboratories caused by the surge in gold prices. “Six weeks ago, I thought it would be tomorrow,” he said with dry humor. “The problem at the labs right now—and this is a global problem—is that gold’s at $4,000. So, everybody who has a gold project is pulling samples out of the closet or going into the field to grab samples and jamming up the labs with them.”
The company’s progress is also visible in its balance sheet. Silver Bullet has retired convertible debentures issued in 2023 and seen the exercise of millions of warrants, strengthening working capital. “The holders of the debentures elected to convert now, before the ratchet took place,” Clausi said. “They were issued shares at the lower pre-ratchet price. And remember, we did that financing when the stock was around 8 to 10 cents, so having a convert at that price point was fantastic for the company to raise capital.”
Silver Bullet’s ownership of its own processing mill in Globe, Arizona, sets it apart from many peers. “We own our own mill, and it’s working very well,” Clausi said. “We’re going to take some capital and add other units so we can extract gold and copper at our mill—not just silver.” The mill, he added, is central to the company’s strategy: “For most mining companies, the mine is the key. For us, it’s the mill—because now we can take other material in Arizona, bring in new mines under the Silver Bullet umbrella, process that material, and control our own costs.”
The company’s portfolio includes three mining jurisdictions—Arizona, Idaho, and Nevada—with both silver and copper prospects. Its flagship Black Diamond Project sits in Arizona’s historic Globe-Miami copper camp, where Silver Bullet is reviving the legacy of the 19th-century Richmond Basin discoveries. “We started at Buckeye, which was silver at a certain grade,” Clausi recalled. “We found the SC Mine—really liked that—and then we were introduced to the KT Mine, which has high gold grades. So, we can work the SC for high silver and the KT for high gold.”
As global demand for silver surges—driven by technology, electrification, and industrial uses—Clausi echoed the caution of experience over hype. “There are some people out there screaming for $600 silver—I can’t see that happening…,” he said. “The well-informed people I read and listen to are calling for it to stay roughly in this range—$50 to $60.” But he shared Jack Lifton’s view that silver remains “the number-one technology metal.” Clausi added, “Last year, the world consumed about 1.3 billion ounces of silver—about 800 million came out of the ground, and around 250 million was recycled. That means there’s a supply deficit, and we have to fill that deficit.”
In typical Clausi fashion, he mixed insight with wit. Asked about the company’s viral social media presence, which features playful nods to the Lone Ranger, he laughed: “Not for the foreseeable future. There’s too much effort and cost that goes into [making actual silver bullets]. I’d rather make concentrate and sell that than make trinkets.”
Silver Bullet Mines’ message is clear: after years of steady progress, the company is producing, shipping, and positioning itself for steady revenue growth. “We’ve always said that SBMI is not in the business of making holes in the ground,” CEO John Carter emphasized in the company’s October release. “We are in the business of selling silver and gold. And we are there.”
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