Sprott’s CIO Maria Smirnova on Silver’s Shortage - Why Prices Could Explode

May 1, 2025

Maria Smirnova, Chief Investment Officer of Sprott Asset Management, dives into the looming silver shortage and its potential to skyrocket prices. She reveals a staggering 1.2 billion-ounce supply deficit that could ignite market interest. The conversation highlights how rising demand from electric vehicles and technology is pushing the limits of supply. Smirnova explains why most silver is a by-product of other mining processes, and discusses the pivotal price point of $50 that could trigger new mining ventures. It's a silver rush on the horizon!

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INSIGHT

Gold vs Silver Demand Differences

Gold and silver share similar physical properties like conductivity and malleability, but demand is very different.
Gold is mainly for investment and store of value, silver is highly used industrially due to affordability and functionality.

INSIGHT

Silver's Structural Deficit

Silver has been in a structural supply deficit for at least five years, totaling about 1.2 billion ounces including ETFs.
This deficit is roughly a full year's worth of total silver demand disappearing from the market over five years.

INSIGHT

Industrial Demand Driving Silver

Electric vehicles, solar panels, and electrification drive rising industrial silver demand steadily.
These technological trends are likely to continue boosting silver use as global electrification advances.

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Is a historic silver shortage about to send prices vertical? Sprott Asset Management CIO Maria Smirnova says we’re five years into a 1.2-billion-ounce supply deficit, and industrial demand from EVs, solar panels, and AI-hungry data centers is only accelerating. With mine output falling, exchange inventories drained, and silver’s market a tiny $30 billion a year, just a flicker of Western investment could light the fuse.

Listen now to learn:

Why the gold-to-silver ratio screams opportunity
How EVs double silver loadings per car
The East vs. West demand split (and what flips it)
Why most silver is a by-product and why that caps supply
The price level ($50) that could unleash new mines

Chapters:

1:10 – Gold vs Silver: Why They’re NOT the Same Metal

2:58 – Silver’s Supply Deficit: How Deep Does It Go?

6:47 – EVs, Solar & AI: Silver’s Triple-Demand Tailwind

11:12 – Falling Inventories: The Hidden Silver Squeeze

14:13 – Blow-Off Coming? When Silver Could Spike

15:38 – Gold’s Surge vs Silver’s Stall—What’s Up?

18:43 – Silver vs Gold: Portfolio Power Play

19:55 – Small but Mighty: Inside Silver’s Tiny Market

21:38 – Mining Reality: Why Silver Is Mostly a By-Product

24:35 – Mine Supply Woes: Why New Silver Projects Lag

26:01 – What Will Ignite the Next Silver Discovery Boom?

27:28 – Smart Money Moves: Where Pros Are Betting on Silver

28:27 – 2025: The Year Silver Finally Breaks Out?

29:46 – Spotting the Spark: How to Track Silver Demand

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