Sherritt International Corp. has announced the closure of its refinery in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, due to the depletion of the feed inventory sourced from its Moa mine in Cuba. The company stated that operations will remain suspended until mining and processing activities resume at Moa and the refinery feed pipeline is reconstructed.
Earlier this year, operations at Sherritt’s Moa joint venture in Cuba were halted as the country encountered fuel shortages following the U.S. decision to block access to Venezuelan oil in January. Prior to the pause, the joint venture oversaw the extraction and processing of ore into mixed sulphide precipitate containing nickel and cobalt, which were then transported to the refining facilities in Alberta.
In light of the refinery shutdown, Sherritt is engaging in discussions with its lenders, acknowledging potential challenges in repaying its debt if accelerated by creditors before the stated maturity dates. The company expressed uncertainty regarding its ability to refinance or extend its debt under the current circumstances.
Sherritt has entered a non-binding agreement with Gillon Capital LLC, a family office associated with a former Trump administration adviser, for the acquisition of a majority stake in the company. The preliminary private placement deal outlines that Gillon would hold a warrant enabling the purchase of sufficient shares to attain a 55 per cent ownership interest in Sherritt.
The refinery facilities in Fort Saskatchewan, as per the company’s website, possess an annual combined production capacity of approximately 38,200 tonnes of nickel and cobalt.
