May 5, 2011 – The Royal Canadian Mint announces that it has been added to the London Bullion Market Association’s (LBMA) Silver Good Delivery List effective April 14, 2011. While the Mint has been listed on the LBMA’s Gold Good Delivery List since 1919, the addition of a Silver Good Delivery List designation for its 1,000 oz. 99.9% pure silver bars is a highly prestigious endorsement of its increasingly important silver refining operations.
The Royal Canadian Mint has satisfied the LBMA as to its production capability and financial standing. It has also passed the LBMA’s exhaustive testing procedures, under which its 1,000 oz. pure silver bars were examined and assayed by independent referees, and its own assaying capabilities were tested.
“As one of the world’s top suppliers of silver bullion products, the Royal Canadian Mint prides itself on the industry-leading quality and reliability of its silver refining and assaying capabilities,” said Ian E. Bennett, President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint. “The addition of the Mint’s 1,000 oz. pure silver bars to the London Bullion Market Association’s Silver Good Delivery List is a coveted seal of approval which proves the world-class status of the Mint’s silver refinery and assay operations.”
Commenting on the announcement, Stewart Murray, Chief Executive for the LBMA, noted, “We are delighted to have been able to add the Royal Canadian Mint to our Silver List. This is especially so, given the leading role that the Mint played in the development of our highly successful reference materials project during the past four years.”
The Royal Canadian Mint’s refinery is located in its Ottawa, Ontario facility and primarily serves the North American market. Its main sources of feedstock are silver doré bars from silver mines; silver removed from gold deposits during gold refining; scrap silver and silver production scrap from its minting operations. The refinery’s output of refined silver is mostly in the form of large bars delivered to refinery customers preferring the return of physical silver or to investments firms, central banks and other financial institutions for investment purposes.
The London Good Delivery List of Acceptable Refiners of gold and silver is maintained by the LBMA, by whom it is copyrighted. It lists those refineries whose gold and silver bars have been found, when originally tested, to meet the required standard for acceptability in the London bullion market. The List now includes 60 gold and 71 silver refiners.
For more information on the Royal Canadian Mint visit its website.
If you need further information on the LBMA is, you might want take a look here.