Hecla Mining Company
Hecla Mining is the largest primary silver producer in the United States, operating a multi-asset portfolio anchored by Greens Creek (Alaska) and Lucky Friday (Idaho), plus Keno Hill (Yukon, ramping). Hecla closed the sale of its Casa Berardi gold mine (Quebec) to Orezone Gold Corporation on 25 Mar 2026 for up to US$593 million total consideration, completing its strategic transformation to a pure-play premier silver producer. Q2 2026 delivered record free cash flow: operating cash flow rose 61% YoY to $175 million and free cash flow doubled to $136 million, with Lucky Friday posting record output and site-level free cash flow. Consolidated silver cash costs from continuing operations (excluding Keno Hill) were negative $8.10/oz with AISC of $6.07/oz. FY2026 guidance: 15.1-16.1 million ounces of silver. The company is effectively debt-free with ~$483 million in cash and an undrawn $225 million revolver.
Notable vs. Peers
- All-in sustaining cost of $6.07/oz Ag, by-product is 77% lower than the peer producer average of $26.15/oz Ag, by-product.
- Jurisdiction risk score of 9/10 is meaningfully safer than the peer average of 6.8/10.
Lifecycle Milestones
Construction Milestones
5 of 5 reached- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
Milestones are recorded only from a company's own dated disclosure. A milestone with no date shown is one we can confirm was reached but for which no date was disclosed — we don't estimate one. "Not yet reached" means exactly that, not that a date is missing. An "Expected" line likewise only ever reflects the company's own guidance (e.g. a study or permit decision targeted for a stated quarter) — most not-yet-reached milestones have none, and that absence means no such guidance has been disclosed, not that one is overdue.
Not in place: road access.
Combined view across 3 projects. Figures below are only combined where the underlying basis genuinely matches -- see the notes under each.
- 14 yrsGreens Creek
- 18 yrsLucky Friday
- 11 yrsKeno Hill
Jurisdiction (40%)9/10
Alaska: Fraser PPI 2025 is 82.71 of 100 (rank 19 of 68), which maps to 9 on this site's scale. Primary assets in Alaska and Idaho, USA (Tier-1 jurisdictions); Casa Berardi (Quebec, Canada) and Keno Hill (Yukon, Canada) are also Tier-1.
Infrastructure (40%)7.1/10
A confirmed mill, no confirmed road access, confirmed grid power, and a confirmed tailings facility at Greens Creek.
Nearby producing mine (20%)Not yet researched
No producing mine within 50 km in our reference list (nearest listed: Kensington (Coeur Mining, Inc.), 91 km). That list doesn't cover every mining district yet, so a longer distance isn't scored as remote.
Acquisition Susceptibility
A relative ranking of how closely this company matches the profile of juniors that have actually been acquired — not a probability, and not a reason to buy. Acquisitions are rare: only a few dozen significant deals happen a year across a universe of thousands of juniors, so even a high score here describes a long shot. The strongest signal in the research, a producer that already owns part of the company, is scored from its disclosed strategic shareholders. A producer that is a joint-venture or earn-in partner on the project, rather than a shareholder, isn't captured yet.
How this score is built
- Disclosed pending dealSub-score: Not scored
No pending acquisition or merger disclosed (checked)
Not scored: having no deal in flight isn't held against a company.
Weight 26.25% - Producer's strategic stakeSub-score: Not yet researched
Holder register not researched yet
Not scored: most juniors that do get bought had no prior toehold, so a missing stake says little either way.
Weight 25% - Distance to a producing mineSub-score:3.6/10
Nearest producing mine: Kensington (Coeur Mining, Inc.), 91 km
10 next to a producing mine, 8 at 20 km, 5 at 50 km, 0 beyond 200 km.
Weight 22.5% · 46% here - Lifecycle stageSub-score:5.5/10
Stage: Production
Feasibility and permitting score 10, where deals cluster, and production 5.5; earlier stages score less, down to 1 at grassroots.
Weight 15% · 31% here - JurisdictionSub-score:9/10
United States: jurisdiction score 9/10
Our jurisdiction score, used as is: higher means lower political and permitting risk.
Weight 6.75% · 14% here - CommoditySub-score:5/10
Primary commodity: Silver
Gold 10, copper 8, silver 5, nickel and uranium 4, others 2: most majors' deals are for gold.
Weight 4.5% · 9% here
Weight is each input's share of the full score. “Here” is its share of this company's score: inputs that aren't scored are left out and the rest re-weighted, never counted as zero.
Your Rankings
Management Team
President and Chief Executive Officer of Hecla Mining Company since Nov 2024. Began his career in 1987 at Homestake Gold Australia Ltd. Spent 20 years (2001-2021) at Barrick Mining Corporation in roles of increasing seniority, including 13 years on the executive leadership team, most recently as Executive Vice President -- Exploration and Growth (Mar 2016-Nov 2021). MSc (Economic Geology), University of Tasmania; BSc (Geology), University of Adelaide.
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Hecla Mining Company since 1 Mar 2021 -- his internal Hecla career since joining in 2010 has included Controller at the Greens Creek operation (Feb 2015-Feb 2018), Treasurer (since 2017), and Director of Internal Audit. Before Hecla, Audit Manager at BDO USA, LLP (Aug 2004-Nov 2010). CPA.
Chairperson of the Board of Hecla Mining Company, independent director since 2017.
Independent Director of Hecla Mining Company since 2007.
Insiders, Investors & Smart Money
Notable shareholders and insiders whose involvement is worth knowing about, plus what we're seeing from institutional/large-investor activity.
Not scored. Smart-money tracking covers companies below about US$5B in market cap, where a single specialist fund or strategic investor taking a stake is a meaningful signal. This company was above that size when it was assessed.
No notable insiders tracked for this miner yet.
Reports, Presentations & Documents
Hecla operates three silver mines: Greens Creek in Alaska (its largest producer), Lucky Friday in Idaho and Keno Hill in Yukon, plus exploration ground in Nevada. It reports resources exclusive of reserves; excluding Casa Berardi, its measured and indicated silver totals 392.0 Moz (231.1 Moz of reserves plus 160.9 Moz of additional measured and indicated). Lucky Friday has a reserve life of about 15 years (year-end 2025 statement). Hecla does not publish a company-wide NPV or IRR.