Earlier this month, James Bay Minerals—an Australian company with holdings in the United States and Canada—announced that it had “agreed to acquire” the silver mine at Shafter, pending an upcoming stakeholder meeting. The company announced in a press release that it had “firm commitments” from investors to finance the project to the tune of $18 million.
“The Shafter Silver Project represents a rare opportunity to acquire a partially permitted, high-grade silver asset with substantial infrastructure and a rich production history in a premier North American mining jurisdiction,” Executive Chairman Matthew Hayes wrote. “With historic production grades comparable to world-class Mexican silver mines, this ‘Mexican-style silver on American soil’ acquisition compliments James Bay Minerals’ high grade Independence Gold project in Nevada.”
Small Caps, an Australian news outlet covering the stock market, reported that James Bay Minerals will rebrand as Black Bear Minerals when the acquisition is complete. The company also tapped a new chief executive officer to take over when the Shafter project is live: Dennis Lindgren of mineral giant Alcoa Australia.
In their announcement, the company explained that Shafter is part of a “prolific” and productive mining region known as the Sierra Madre Belt, with a “mineralized zone” spanning around 2.5 miles.
Shafter has been a hub for mineral extraction since 1883. During the mine’s heyday in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it produced 2.3 million tons of ore containing 35.2 million ounces of silver. Aurcana Silver, the mine’s most recent owner, acquired it in 2008. Aurcana shuttered operations in 2013, thanks to deflated silver prices.
While only a handful of residents still claim Shafter as their home, they all rely on the mine for water. Residents panicked in 2022 when rumors that Aurcana had gone bankrupt started making the rounds, and they organized to try to save their water supply. The Shafter Water Supply Corporation is currently working with Presidio County to take advantage of grant funding that could provide a source of drinking water that doesn’t rely on the mine.
Big Bend Sentinel reached out to James Bay for comment on the future of Shafter’s water supply but did not receive a response by press time.