Mexico-focused Arian Silver is considering buying a silver mine and a tailings operation to add to its existing projects.

Chief executive officer Jim Williams says assays due in early summer should enable the AIM-quoted company to produce an updated and enlarged resource statement for its projects at Tepal in Mexico’s Michoacan state and San Jose in Zacatecas state. London-headquartered Arian recently announced initial resource calculations showing 27.7 million oz of silver, 64.6 million lbs of lead and 147.5 million lbs of zinc at San Jose, and 1.18 million oz of gold and 421 million lbs of copper at Tepal. Williams claims the company could have as much as 230 million oz of silver-equivalent.

With silver at around $21 an ounce, that would be an impressive resource for a company now valued at £26 million. Arian suggests it could extract gold at a maximum cost of $12.5 a tonne by open-pit mining and is involved in other smaller projects.

But Williams wants to speed up development by acquisitions, if possible. Lamenting that the company’s AIM rating effectively rules out a public company takeover, he says he has two potential targets in his sights, both in Mexico: a producing silver mine with gold by-product and a silver tailings operation.

Arian, which has raised modest sums by private placings, might accompany its new resource statement with another funding, says Williams. Its shares hit 31.5p two years ago and now stand at 21.5p. They have some speculative appeal, stockmarket conditions permitting.

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Arian Silver Corporation (DI)	AIM	£4.1m	2.75p	0.00p
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