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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;gxseries, post: 2518687, member: 4373&quot;]There is no simple answer to this. With regards to mining, it is geology that ultimately dictates mining practices. This is how mining companies decide if a certain mine is to be open cut, underground and then there are different methods. Sometimes a mine might start off as open cut and then to go into underground or via versa. </p><p><br /></p><p>As far as I am aware, silver is rarely mined by its own - it&#039;s often found in gold-copper deposit or lead-zinc deposit. Some mines are more challenging due to the geology and therefore may be not straightforward. It can even be the extra elements that make it more challenging! For instance if you look at one of America&#039;s worst unplanned mine disaster - Berkeley pit, this was a predominately copper mine, with traces of gold and silver. It was a profitable mine until environmental factors start to come to play due to excessive amount of sulfur and arsenic. For more information, this may be of interest: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berkeley_Pit" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berkeley_Pit" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berkeley_Pit</a></p><p><br /></p><p>Major costs are your capital expenditure such as rock crusher, refinery, smelter, excavators, trucks, pumps, ventilation (for underground) etc. And then consumables such as fuel, explosives, tyres, equipment parts. Transportation cost - are there trains available? Do they have to be built or ores / refined metals have to be trucked out? Are there any environmental concerns? Labour - are there any near the work area or do they have to be hired from somewhere far away? </p><p><br /></p><p>One thing that don&#039;t get discussed often is how companies attempt to control cost by locking in contracts that may have seem to be a good deal at that time, only to see prices going up or maybe down. I highly doubt mines deal with spot prices and often lock in contracts that are medium term such as 3 to 6 months contract which get renewed every few months. This also applies to various suppliers.</p><p><br /></p><p>It is quite rare for mining companies to publish explicit breakdown cost for each mine. If you are ambitious, you might be able to get hints from major mining companies annual report and they give a rough breakdown figure of their spending and profitability.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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