- Americas Gold & Silver Corp. has completed a full operational restructuring at its flagship Galena silver mine in Idaho, issuing its first production guidance under new management and transitioning from a diagnostic phase into active execution of its growth strategy in 2026.
- The company’s first in-house resource re-estimation at Galena delivered a 190 million ounce silver resource at 500 g/t representing a 19% increase in M&I ounces and a 21% improvement in average grade under the new team.
- The introduction of long-hole stoping across nine completed panels is already producing the highest silver grades at Galena in 20 years at 473 g/t, with a planned 70% transition to the method by late 2027 expected to deliver 40–50% reductions in per-tonne mining costs alongside significant hoisting and infrastructure upgrades.
- The acquisition of the neighbouring Crescent mine adds complementary silver-copper-antimony feed that will enter the Galena mill in H2 2026, filling spare capacity, spreading fixed costs, and generating additional cash flow without meaningful incremental capital outlay.
- Americas Gold & Silver is currently trading at 0.6–0.7 times NAV against a silver peer group at 1.5–2 times NAV, with a joint venture antimony leaching facility expected operational within 16 months set to unlock additional margin from a critical metal the company has produced since World War II but historically received no payment for.
Americas Gold & Silver Corp. (TSX:USA) has spent the past 14 months restructuring its operations, rebuilding its resource base, and engineering the mining methods at its flagship Galena complex in Idaho. With that diagnostic and design work largely complete, the company has now entered what management describes as an execution phase issuing its first production guidance under the new team, completing a comprehensive resource re-estimation, and progressing a series of capital projects aimed at reducing costs and increasing output.
New Resource Baseline at Galena
One of the most significant deliverables from the past year was the completion of Americas Gold & Silver’s first in-house resource and reserve estimate at Galena. The process took 12 months and involved extensive drilling and a full re-estimation of the deposit. The result is a resource that management believes reflects a high level of confidence and forms the foundation for future mine planning and capital allocation decisions.
In total, Galena now holds over 190 million ounces of silver in the measured, indicated, and inferred categories, at an average grade of 500 grams per tonne (g/t). Within that, the silver-copper-antimony vein system which is the highest-grade portion of the deposit hosts 90 million ounces at over 700 g/t silver. Historically, the mine’s production peak was achieved in 2002 at 729 g/t. The new resource is therefore grading in line with the best material this mine has historically produced. Overall, M&I ounces grew by 19% and average grade increased by 21% under the new team’s estimate.
Turner emphasised that the scale and longevity of the deposit remain core parts of the investment case. The 034 Vein discovery, which was identified as a new discovery under the current team, has grown from an initial estimate of approximately 1 million ounces to over 7 million ounces, with further upside considered likely. Two additional new veins, the 149 and 520 systems, are also being actively drilled.
Long-Hole Stoping and Hoisting Upgrades
The operational changes at Galena represent the most substantive shift in how the mine functions. For over a century, Galena used underhand cut-and-fill as its primary mining method. The current team, drawing on experience from Klondex Mines and Hycroft, introduced narrow long-holestoping in July 2025. Nine panels have now been completed and the result of the dilution has not increased while productivity has risen substantially.
The transition to long-hole stoping is expected to reach 70% of total production by late 2027, with underhand cut-and-fill retained for areas where vein geometry does not allow the long-hole method. The projected cost reduction from this transition is 40–50% on a per-tonne mining basis.
On the infrastructure side, the primary shaft at Galena has already had its hoisting capacity doubled from 300 to 600 ore tonnes per day following a hoist upgrade completed last year. A second phase, currently commencing, upgrades the braking system, which is expected to lift throughput to 800–900 ore tonnes per day by mid-May. The company is also installing a fibre optic network throughout the mine, enabling continuous equipment monitoring, automation of fans, pumps, and switchboards, and improved shaft communications. Management reports a 300% improvement in overall productivity since taking over 15 months ago.
As Turner described the direction of the business:
“We’re now in execution mode. We are here to execute that strategy that we designed towards the end of last year, and we’re going to be busy moving forward executing that strategy as we step through the next several years.”
Crescent Acquisition: Filling the Mill and Generating Cash Flow
In addition to Galena, the company acquired the Crescent mine, located nine miles away in the same Silver Valley district of Idaho. The acquisition was described by Turner as strategically complementary rather than opportunistic as both assets share the same ore type, meaning concentrates can be co-mingled in the Galena mill without separation issues.
Crescent ore is expected to begin entering the Galena mill in the second half of this year, providing feed to a mill that currently has significant spare capacity. The Galena mill is currently processing 410–420 tonnes per day against a capacity of 750 tonnes per day, with an additional 300-tonne-per-day ball mill and a nearby Coeur mill adding further headroom. Filling that capacity with Crescent ore allows fixed costs to be spread across a larger tonnage base, improving margins at Galena without increasing its own production profile in the near term. Crescent has not seen an exploration drill hole since 2011, and the company plans to drill it aggressively as part of its 64,000-metre, $20 million 2026 exploration programme.
Interview with Oliver Turner, VP, Corporate Development of Americas Gold & Silver Corp.
Antimony: A Strategic Byproduct Moving
Perhaps the most distinctive feature of Americas Gold & Silver’s near-term value proposition is its antimony production at Galena. The mine has produced antimony continuously since World War II, but under a prior offtake agreement with Teck, the company was penalised for antimony content rather than paid for it. That contract was renegotiated in mid-2024, and as of January 1, 2026, the company is receiving payment for antimony, copper, and other byproducts.
To further maximise antimony revenue, the company announced a joint venture with US Antimony in early 2026 to construct an on-site antimony leaching facility. The facility will process tetrahedrite concentrates extracting antimony into a flake product for sale. US Antimony’s downstream operations will handle further refining into trioxide, trisulfide, or ingots depending on buyer specifications. The total capital cost is estimated at approximately $50 million, with Americas Gold & Silver responsible for 51% as the majority partner. The company believes it can fund its share from operating cash flow, and is also in discussions with US government and other parties as potential financing partners.
Importantly, Galena is identified as the largest producing antimony mine in the Americas today. The leaching facility, expected to be operational within approximately 16 months of its announcement, simply unlocks better economics from an existing production stream. Turner framed the antimony opportunity clearly:
“We’re mining one ton of rock for the high-grade silver. Inside, you have three metals. Since before, we were not getting correct payabilities for those two [other] metals. Now we’re maximising revenues for something we’re already putting the cost into mining, so this almost comes for free for investors.”
Valuation and Analyst Coverage
Americas Gold & Silver has attracted eight analyst ratings since the new management team took over, adding seven new analysts in approximately 14 months. Based on consensus estimates at spot prices, the company is currently trading at 0.6–0.7 times NAV. The company notes that comparable silver producers trade at approximately 1.5 times NAV, with some above 2 times, and that recent M&A transactions in the silver space have occurred at roughly 2 times NAV. The gap between current pricing and peer multiples is what management characterises as the primary near-term opportunity for investors with multiple expansion driven by execution, further resource growth, and the step-by-step monetisation of byproducts.
The company also disclosed a discovery at El Alacrán in Mexico, located north of its San Rafael operation. Initial drilling of one of four remaining surface outcrops returned encouraging results, with management describing it as a potential major new discovery, though early stage.
The Investment Thesis for Americas Gold & Silver
- High-grade silver asset with demonstrated resource quality. Galena hosts 190 million ounces at 500 g/t, with a 90 million ounce subset around 700 g/t as per Turner. Grade grew 21% under the new team’s first re-estimation. At the mine’s historical peak production rate, it operated at 729 g/t well within the range of what the current resource can support.
- Cost structure improving materially. The transition to 70% long-hole stoping by late 2027 is expected to deliver 40–50% reductions in per-tonne mining costs. Combined with the hoisting upgrades of tripling skipping speeds by mid-May, and fibre optic automation, the mine’s unit economics are improving across multiple fronts simultaneously.
- Near-term cash flow catalyst from Crescent. Crescent ore entering the Galena mill in H2 2026 will spread fixed costs and add revenue without requiring significant capital outlay. The asset brings additional silver, copper, and antimony feed, and has been untouched by exploration since 2011.
- Antimony optionality with a concrete timeline. Galena is the largest producing antimony mine in the Americas. The joint venture leaching facility, due in approximately 16 months, will significantly improve payability on a metal already being mined. This is a near-term margin expansion lever, not a speculative future project.
- Valuation discount relative to peers is significant. At 0.6–0.7 times NAV versus a peer group trading at 1.5–2 times NAV, the company offers room for multiple re-rating alongside operational delivery. Investors should monitor quarterly production reports against issued guidance as the primary execution signal.
- Investors should note: The investment case is predicated on execution. The management team has articulated a clear strategy, but operational ramp-ups in underground silver mining carry inherent risks. Production guidance adherence in H1 and H2 2026 will be the most important near-term measure of whether the discount to NAV is warranted or correcting.
Macro Thematic: Silver and Critical Metals
Silver occupies a unique position among commodities in 2026. It functions simultaneously as a monetary metal closely correlated with gold in periods of macro uncertainty, and as an industrial input with growing exposure to energy transition infrastructure, including solar photovoltaic panels, electric vehicles, and grid-scale power systems. This dual demand profile means silver benefits from two independent demand drivers that historically have not moved in lockstep, providing a degree of structural resilience that other commodities lack.
The broader macro environment in 2026 is characterised by elevated geopolitical tension, persistent inflationary pressures in some economies, and active central bank gold buying that has spilled positive sentiment into the broader precious metals complex. Silver has historically lagged gold in early bull phases before outperforming in the latter stages, a pattern that has led many commodity analysts to describe the current environment as one of the most constructive for silver in years.
Antimony adds a second and increasingly relevant macro layer to the Americas Gold & Silver thesis. Antimony’s primary applications: flame retardants, lead-acid battery grid alloys, and emerging use in next-generation sodium-antimony and antimony-based energy storage technologies, all place it squarely in the critical minerals category that governments across the United States, Europe, and allied nations are actively seeking to secure. China controls the majority of global refined antimony supply, and export restrictions imposed in 2024 created the sharp price spike referenced in the interview. Supply from outside China is limited. Galena is one of a very small number of operating antimony-producing mines in the Western Hemisphere, a fact that gives its production a strategic dimension beyond pure commodity pricing.
For investors evaluating the Americas Gold & Silver story, the macro backdrop supports both the silver price assumption underpinning the NAV analysis and the longer-term strategic value of the antimony byproduct. As Turner summarised the combined opportunity:
“If you’re looking for exposure to antimony in your portfolio, Galena is the largest producing antimony mine today. This isn’t a future project. This is something that’s coming out of the ground today.”
TL;DR
Americas Gold & Silver enters 2026 as a company in transition from restructuring to growth. The new management team has completed a full resource re-estimation at Galena that established a 190 million ounce silver base at 500 g/t silver grades comparable to the mine’s historical peak. Long-hole stoping is already delivering the highest silver grades in 20 years. Hoisting infrastructure upgrades are progressing on schedule. The Crescent acquisition adds near-term mill feed and additional byproduct credits. And the antimony joint venture with US Antimony offers a credible path to unlocking meaningful margin from a metal that has been produced at Galena since World War II but never properly monetised. On top of silver, Galena is the largest producing antimony mine in the Americas, and a new leaching joint venture will significantly improve the economics of that byproduct within 16 months. The company trades at 0.6–0.7 times NAV while silver peers trade at 1.5–2 times. The operational story is transitioning from promise to delivery.