Sherritt International Corp. S-T says it will temporarily lay off nearly half of its Canadian staff as it works to restore operations at its refinery in Alberta.
The company shut down refining operations at its mill in Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., earlier this year when feed inventory from its Moa mine in Cuba ran out.
Sherritt says it’s temporarily laying off about 280 employees, representing 47 per cent of its Canadian workforce. The layoffs are expected to last about 90 days.
The company says some work will continue during the layoff period, including production and sales of ammonia fertilizer and sulphuric acid as well as maintenance and continuing environmental protection and safety work.
Operations at the Moa joint venture were paused as Cuba faced fuel shortages after the U.S. cut off access to oil from Venezuela in January.
Last month, Sherritt said it received a licence from the U.S. government authorizing the purchase and delivery of fuel to its Moa mine and processing operations in Cuba. It said the licence is the first of a series of emergency licences that will be necessary for it to be able to restart operations.