The Canadian company Sherritt International reported on Wednesday the death by accident at work of one of its workers, after falling from a ladder in the nickel-cobalt mine that is operating in Moa, province of Holguin.
“This incident has been a heartbreaking event that underscores the importance of maintaining a strong safety culture throughout our operations,” Sherritt Chairman and CEO Leon Binedell said in a statement, according to a statement. note posted on the company’s website.
Canada’s Sherritt International reports death of worker at mine in Cuba https://t.co/jjDDupu1uL
— The Globe and Mail (@globeandmail) April 24, 2023
The text does not provide further details about the incident, nor does it reveal the identity and nationality of the deceased. However, through the statement the company extended its “deepest” condolences to the worker’s family, friends and colleagues and described what happened as an “incredibly difficult time.”
The company mining He said that he has started an investigation together with the Cuban authorities to determine the causes of the accident, the second reported by the Canadian company in Cuba in less than a month, the agency said. efe.
In April, Sherritt issued a similar statement following the death of another worker involved in an accident with a vehicle that occurred at the Pedro Soto Alba plant, in the same Holguin town.
The president of the company affirmed that “together with our Cuban partners, we are applying immediate measures to improve our attention to security in Moa, since the safety and well-being of our employees continue to be our highest priority.”
Sherritt in Cuba
The Moa nickel-cobalt mine is a 50/50 joint venture between Sherritt and General Nickel Company SA, in which they mine and process nickel laterite deposits in Cuba to refine them into finished nickel and cobalt from their refinery in Fort Saskatchewan, in the province of Alberta, Canada.
Sherritt is also working on the exploration and drilling of crude oil on the northern Cuban platform, in conjunction with the state company Unión Cuba Petróleo (Cupet) and Energás, a company specialized in the production of electricity with the gas that accompanies this raw material.
His interests in Cuba began in 1991 in the extraction of nickel and cobalt, the exploration and production of oil and gas, and have since spread to other spheres, such as electric power, agriculture and tourism.
In October 2022 Sherritt advertisement that it had reached an agreement with its Cuban partners to settle debt for a total amount of 362 million Canadian dollars (260 million US dollars) in five years.
The agreement known as the “cobalt swap” entered into force on January 1, 2023 and allows the Cuban mining company to prioritize dividend payments in the form of finished cobalt to each partner, and each partner’s share of these cobalt dividends. they are redirected to Sherritt as payment of the debt.
Efe/OnCuba.
