Highlander Silver and Bear Creek Mining Combine to Create Leading Growth Company in the Silver Sector
Highlander Silver Rescues Bear Creek from the Brink to Consolidate Tier-1 Peruvian Silver Assets
On December 19, 2025, Highlander Silver (HSLV) and Bear Creek Mining (BCM) announced a definitive agreement to merge. Under the Plan of Arrangement, BCM shareholders will receive 0.1175 HSLV shares for each BCM share held. This results in a pro-forma ownership of 82% for HSLV shareholders and 18% for BCM shareholders. Concurrent with the merger, HSLV is conducting an CAD $18 million private placement at $0.36 per share. Crucially, the deal includes a massive debt settlement where BCM’s primary lenders, Royal Gold and Equinox Gold, will trade their debt and stream interests for a combination of cash (US$7.8M total) and increased Net Smelter Return (NSR) royalties on the Corani and Mercedes projects.
This transaction is a "Game Changer" primarily because it prevents the imminent insolvency of Bear Creek Mining while catapulting Highlander Silver from a junior explorer into a major silver developer with an operating gold mine. - For BCM: This is a total bailout. BCM reported a US$30.7M net loss in Q3 2025 and an AISC of $3,563/oz at its Mercedes mine—nearly $100/oz higher than the realized gold price. Without this merger, BCM was a high-probability bankruptcy candidate. - For HSLV: They acquire the Corani Project, one of the world's largest undeveloped silver deposits (229 Moz Reserves). However, they also inherit the Mercedes mine, which is currently a cash-flow incinerator due to operational challenges and high debt-servicing costs. - The balance sheet is "cleaned" by converting debt into royalties, but this creates a permanent "royalty drag." Royal Gold’s NSR on Corani will increase to 2.75%, which reduces the long-term NPV of the flagship asset.
- Highlander Silver: Formerly focused on the San Luis project in Peru (Indicated: 356koz Au at 24.4 g/t and 8.4Moz Ag at 579 g/t). San Luis is a bonanza-grade asset but lacked the scale HSLV management desired.
- Bear Creek Mining: Flagship is the Corani Project in Puno, Peru. It is one of the largest primary silver deposits in the world. BCM also operates the Mercedes Mine in Mexico, which was acquired from Equinox Gold but has struggled with "development deficits" and contractor underperformance.