TORONTO, October 20, 2026 Sherritt International, the Toronto listed miner and processor of nickel and cobalt, announced on October 20 that it has obtained a specific license from the United States Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control authorizing the sale and delivery of fuel, fuel oil, and sulfur to its Moa nickel operations in Cuba. The license is framed by the company as an emergency, narrowly tailored authorization that would permit initial fuel shipments required to resume mining and processing activities at the Moa mine, which form part of the long running Moa Joint Venture. H2: What the license allows and what it does not According to Sherritt, the license authorizes the sale, transport, export, delivery and payment for fuel and related services to the Moa operation, and it extends protections to participating vendors, banks, insurers and vessel operators that facilitate the shipments. The company said it has signed an interim consent agreement with Moa Bay Mining Co., an entity holding a certified claim under the United States Helms Burton Act, and that parallel OFAC authorizations required to support that agreement were obtained concurrently. The company underlined that the new authorization is only the first of a series of OFAC approvals that Sherritt says will be necessary to fully restart operations at Moa and to resume refining activity at its Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta facility. Sherritt said it is continuing to seek a second emergency license it regards as required for the broader restart plan. H2: Why the authorization matters to Canada Sherritt operates one of North America’s few facilities capable of refining nickel and cobalt into finished products, at Fort Saskatchewan in Alberta. The refinery was placed on care and maintenance in June 2026 after a combination of fuel shortages at the Cuban mine and restrictions tied to expanded U.S. sanctions disrupted the feedstock pipeline. The new OFAC authorization, if it leads to an actual and sustained flow of fuel and a subsequent restart of Moa output, would help restore the supply of nickel and cobalt feedstock into Canada and reduce near term disruptions in critical minerals processing capacity on the continent. Canada’s domestic refining capability for cobalt in particular is limited, and Sherritt has described the Alberta refinery as a strategically important asset for North American critical minerals supply chains. A restart would therefore be closely watched by buyers in battery and electric vehicle supply chains, by Canadian provincial and federal policymakers concerned with industrial capacity, and by investors tracking the company’s liquidity and solvency prospects. H2: Remaining hurdles, financing and a potential change of control Despite the license, Sherritt acknowledged a series of material uncertainties. The company is operating under constrained liquidity and has publicly said it faces a real risk that it may not be able to continue as a going concern unless it secures additional financing or completes a recapitalization. Sherritt has been in exclusive talks with Gillon Capital, a U.S. investment fund, under a non binding term sheet that contemplates a potential controlling investment. The company said the Fuel License was issued while Sherritt and Gillon Capital continue applications for broader OFAC authorization that would be required in connection with any transaction that transfers control to a U.S. investor. Sherritt told investors the initial fuel shipment is expected to take place in the fourth quarter of 2026 but that an actual operational restart will depend on receiving the next OFAC authorization and on securing the necessary commercial participants to execute shipments and operations. The company also cautioned that even with permits in hand, reloading equipment, logistics and workforce matters, among other operational challenges, will influence the timing and scale of any restart. H2: Market and policy implications For Canadian markets, any credible path to resumption at Moa and Fort Saskatchewan would relieve a bottleneck in North American cobalt supply, which affects manufacturers of battery materials and downstream users. For policymakers, the episode reinforces the complexities that cross border sanctions and foreign policy actions can impose on domestic industrial assets. It also revives questions about how Canada should support critical minerals processing capacity when international geopolitical actions create supply interruptions beyond the control of domestic firms. Investors are likely to focus closely on two items in the near term. First, whether OFAC will grant the further licenses Sherritt says are necessary to restart production and whether those approvals can be structured in a way that supports the potential financing and ownership changes the company is pursuing. Second, whether Sherritt can secure fresh capital or a binding transaction that restores its liquidity and provides the working capital needed to operate across the Moa mine and the Fort Saskatchewan refinery. H2: What to watch next Sherritt said it will provide further disclosures as arrangements for the initial shipment are finalized and as any additional OFAC authorizations are received. Market participants and Canadian officials will watch for concrete shipment schedules, cargo manifests, and confirmations that service providers and insurers will participate. On the corporate front, investors will watch whether the negotiations with Gillon Capital progress from exclusivity and a non binding term sheet to a definitive agreement, and how Canadian regulators evaluate any change of control of a resource firm with domestic refining assets. The company noted that the situation continues to present forward looking risks and uncertainties and advised investors to consult its public filings for detailed risk disclosures. For Canada, the development is an important test of how transnational sanctions regimes interact with domestic industrial policy and with efforts to secure critical minerals supply chains for the energy transition. Word count approximately 870 words.