Ivanhoe Energy Inc. says it is bankrupt after restructuring talks with creditors proved unsuccessful.

The company had been working with Ernst & Young to reach a viable restructuring proposal and had already extended the deadline for filing a proposal by a month.

The Vancouver-based heavy oil company has projects in Ecuador and Mongolia and was working to develop a proprietary upgrading process for heavy oil.

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The Toronto Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq delisted the company's shares in February.

Ivanhoe Energy is one of several companies backed by Robert Friedland, a mining promoter who has played key roles in developing the Voisey's Bay nickel deposit in Labrador and the Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold deposit in Mongolia.