VANCOUVER, Feb. 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ - Ivanhoe Energy
Inc. (TSX: IE; NASDAQ: IVAN) (TSX: IE.DB) today announced that,
with the authorization and approval of its board of directors, the
company has made a determination to file a Notice of Intention to
Make a Proposal (Notice of Intention) pursuant to the provisions of
Part III of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (BIA) (Canada).
Pursuant to the Notice of Intention, Ernst & Young Inc. (EY)
has been appointed as the trustee in the company's proposal
proceedings (the Proposal Trustee) and in that capacity will
monitor and assist the company in its restructuring efforts.
It was determined by the company's board of directors that as a
result of the company's current financial situation, seeking
protection under the BIA would be in the best interests of the
company and all of its stakeholders. While under BIA protection,
the company will continue with its efforts to pursue strategic
alternatives, including restructuring its existing debt obligations
and pursuing the sale of assets.
A Notice of Intention is the first stage of a restructuring
process under the BIA, which permits the company to pursue a
restructuring of its financial affairs, through a formal Proposal
process. The filing of the Notice of Intention has the effect of
imposing an automatic stay of proceedings (Stay) that will protect
the company and its assets from the claims of creditors and others
while the company pursues this objective. The initial Stay period
of 30 days can be extended to a maximum six months, during which
time the company will assess its ability to present a viable
Proposal to its creditors.
The company continues to be actively engaged in discussions with
various stakeholders to recapitalize the company. Strategic and
financial alternatives under consideration are focused on relieving
the financial burden of the company's current debt structure and
obtaining additional financing necessary to fund ongoing
operations. There can be no assurance that the current process will
result in a transaction or, if a transaction is undertaken, that it
will be successfully concluded in a timely manner or at all.
Failure by the company to achieve its financing and restructuring
goals through an approved Proposal would result in the company
becoming bankrupt.
All inquiries regarding the BIA proceedings should be directed
to the Proposal Trustee at +1-403-206-5003. Court materials and
other information about the BIA proceedings will be available on
the Proposal Trustee's website at www.ey.com/ca/ivanhoeenergy.
Ivanhoe Energy is an independent international heavy-oil
exploration and development company focused on pursuing long-term
growth using advanced technologies, including its proprietary
heavy-oil upgrading process (HTL®). For more information
about Ivanhoe Energy Inc., please visit www.ivanhoeenergy.com.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS: This document
includes forward-looking statements, including forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. When used in this document, the words such as
"could," "plan," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may,"
"potential," "should," and similar expressions relating to matters
that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements.
Although Ivanhoe Energy believes that its expectations reflected in
these forward-looking statements are reasonable, such statements
involve risks and uncertainties and no assurance can be given that
actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking
statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to
differ from these forward-looking statements are disclosed in
Ivanhoe Energy's 2013 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on EDGAR and the Canadian
Securities Commissions on SEDAR.
SOURCE Ivanhoe Energy Inc.