Cuba fuel squeeze to halt Sherritt’s nickel-cobalt operations

Sherritt International Corp. plans to suspend mining operations in Cuba as fuel supply constraints affect the country.

The Toronto-based company has reduced operations at its joint venture in Moa, Cuba, and expects to pause mining and place the processing plant on standby within the next week, Sherritt said in a statement Tuesday. Planned maintenance activities will be performed during the downtime.

The nickel and cobalt mine becomes the latest victim of a long-running economic crisis in Cuba that has become a near-existential struggle since the US captured Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro, an ally who provided a lifeline through oil shipments. US President Donald Trump, who vehemently opposes the island’s regime, later warned “Cuba will be failing pretty soon.”

Sherritt received notification that planned fuel deliveries for Moa — one of Cuba’s largest mineral extraction operations — wouldn’t be fulfilled. It’s “actively engaging with relevant counterparts and evaluating all options for sourcing input commodities.”

Operations at Sherritt’s Energas SA energy joint venture in Cuba are continuing as planned without any impact, the company said.

The company also said there is no immediate impact on operations in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, where Sherritt’s refinery continues to produce finished nickel and cobalt for sale. Inventory there is expected to last until about mid-April.

(By James Attwood)