Canada's Sherritt to halt Cuba mine operations over fuel shortages

Feb 17 (Reuters) - Canada's Sherritt International Corp S.TO said on Tuesday that it plans to halt operations at its nickel and cobalt mine in Cuba due to the fuel shortage on the Caribbean island.

• The Toronto-based company has reduced operations at its joint venture in Moa, Cuba, and is due to pause all mining operations on the site within the next week, it said in a statement.

• Sherritt said it was notified that planned fuel deliveries for Moa will not be fulfilled and the timeline for resuming them was unknown.

• The Moa joint venture with Cuba's General Nickel Company SA supplies nickel and cobalt to Sherritt's Fort Saskatchewan refinery in Alberta, Canada, with total production capacity of 38,200 tons a year.

• The halting of Cuba operations in Cuba will not immediately impact the Fort Saskatchewan refinery, with inventory of feed available through mid-April.

• The company is reviewing options to sustain operations at both Moa and Fort Saskatchewan.

• Sherritt's one-third stake in Cuba's Energas SA energy venture is unaffected, the company said. Energas supplies electricity from natural gas to Cuba's grid, which powers Moa.

• Cuba's fuel supply has been cut short since the United States captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in early January. Venezuela was the island's main provider of oil, and Washington has since threatened to impose tariffs on other countries supplying Cuba with fuel.