HECLA MINING CO/DE/

Current report

Item 1A. – Risk Factors of our 2024 Form 10-K and Part II, Item 1A. - Risk Factors in our first and second quarter Form 10-Q set forth information relating to important risks and uncertainties that could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition or operating results.

Current report

Mine closure and reclamation regulations impose substantial costs on our operations and include requirements that we provide financial assurance supporting those obligations. These costs could significantly increase and we might not be able to provide financial assurance.

Current report

We are required by U.S. federal and state laws and regulations and by laws and regulations in the foreign jurisdictions in which we operate to reclaim our mining properties, which typically includes filing of a closure plan with the applicable regulator. The specific requirements may change and vary among jurisdictions, but they are similar in that they aim to minimize long term effects of exploration and mining disturbance by requiring the control of possible deleterious effluents and re-establishment to some degree of pre-disturbance land forms and vegetation. Mine closure plans are subject to periodic review and update requirements. In the course of reviewing or updating closure plans, it is common for the estimates, plans, costs and other details of the plan to be revised. Some of these revisions can be significant, including estimated closure cost increases. For example, our Casa Berardi mine is likely to soon update its mine closure plan. Currently we have recorded a $18.5 million liability for reclamation and closure costs at Casa Berardi. We believe that it is possible that we may need to materially increase that liability to reflect the updated closure plan. See the risk factors in our 2024 Form 10-K,“Our environmental and asset retirement obligations may exceed the provisions we have made,” “Our accounting and other estimates may be imprecise” and“We are required to obtain governmental permits and other approvals in order to conduct mining operations.”

Current report

In some cases, we are required to provide financial assurances as security for reclamation costs, which may exceed our estimates for such costs. Similarly, our reclamation costs may exceed the financial assurances in place and those assurances may ultimately be unavailable to us. We often satisfy financial assurance requirements by posting surety bonds or cash collateral however, we may be unable to obtain the required surety bonds or may not have the resources to provide cash collateral, and the bonds or collateral may not fully cover the cost of reclamation and any such shortfall could have a material adverse impact on our financial condition. Further, when we use the services of a surety company to provide the required bond for reclamation, the surety companies often require us to post collateral with them. Currently we utilize letters of credit issued under our revolving credit facility as the source of such collateral, and as a result, there are less funds available for us to borrow under the facility for other purposes. In the event that we are unable to obtain necessary bonds or to post sufficient collateral, we may experience a material adverse effect on our operations or financial results. See the risk factors below in our 2024 Form 10-K,“Our existing stockholders are effectively subordinated to the holders of our Senior Notes", “Any downgrade in the credit ratings assigned to us or our debt securities could increase future borrowing costs, adversely affect the availability of new financing and may result in increased collateral requirements under our existing surety bond portfolio,” and“Mine closure and reclamation regulations impose substantial costs on our operations, and include requirements that we provide financial assurance supporting those obligations. These costs could significantly increase, and we might not be able to provide financial assurance.”

Current report

The EPA and other state, provincial or federal agencies may also require financial assurance for investigation and remediation actions that are required under settlements of enforcement actions under CERCLA or equivalent state or foreign regulations. Currently there are no financial assurance requirements for active mining operations under CERCLA, and a lawsuit filed by several environmental organizations which sought to require the EPA to adopt financial assurance rules for mining companies with active mining operations was dismissed by a federal court. In the future, financial assurance rules under CERCLA, if adopted, could be financially material and adverse to us. See the risk factors in our 2024 Form 10-K,“Our operations are subject to complex, evolving and increasingly stringent environmental laws and regulations. Compliance with environmental regulations, and litigation based on such regulations, involves significant costs and can threaten existing operations or constrain expansion opportunities” and“We are required to obtain governmental permits and other approvals in order to conduct mining operations.”

Previous report

Tariffs, other import/export regulations, or trade disputes between the United States and other jurisdictions may have a negative effect on global economic conditions and on our business, financial results and financial condition.

Previous report

There remains risk and uncertainty to our business and the global economy surrounding tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration and possible reciprocal tariffs announced by other countries. On July 6, 2025, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced that countries that have not reached trade deals with the United States by August 1 will no longer be subject to a pause of the country-specific tariff rates previously announced on April 2. In addition, on July 7, the administration sent letters setting country-specific tariff rates for several countries with whom the U.S. has not reached trade deals, including Japan and South Korea, with tariffs set for each at 25% on all goods effective August 1. On July 22 and July 31, Japan and South Korea, respectively, reached trade deals with the United States, reducing their export tariff rates to 15%. To date, neither nation has reciprocated with tariffs that impact our products sold therein.

Previous report

Currently, we sell our products into Japan and South Korea, as well as Canada, and we have recently had sales into China. We have very little sales in the United States. As of the date of this report, neither Japan nor South Korea have announced plans to implement reciprocal tariffs on U.S. imports in response to the U.S.-announced tariffs. While the impacts of tariffs on us to date have been immaterial to the sales of our products, reciprocal tariffs could make it more expensive for us to export our products to affected countries, including Japan and South Korea. This creates risk for us that customers in those or other tariff-impacted countries will seek to renegotiate existing agreements with us, seek to shift some or all of their increased costs to us in future agreements, break or terminate agreements with us if they are deemed uneconomic to the customer, or take other actions, any of which alone or in combination could materially adversely impact our business, financial condition, and results of operations. Further, any materials that we import to the U.S. from countries subject to tariffs could become more expensive if subject to a tariff, which could also have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Previous report

In addition to possible impacts directly on our business, tariffs or other trade obstacles could have a material adverse effect on global economic conditions and the stability of global financial markets, and they may significantly reduce global trade. Any of these factors could depress economic activity, impact U.S. dollar/foreign currency exchange rates, restrict our access to customers and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.