Elan missed a fourth deadline today for filing 2002 US accounts to avert a default on up to $2 billion in debt but won a reprieve of another week.
The company said it was working with auditor KPMG to complete the filing but said: "Elan cannot provide any assurances as to the timing of the completion and filing of the 2002 Form 20-F" - the document the company needs to file its US results.
The extension follows intensive talks with auditors and is expected to be seen as a blow to the company as it failed to meet another deadline for filing the accounts.
Elan shares dropped more than 2 per cent at the start of business this morning.
The company risks defaulting on up to $2 billion debt if it does not reach agreement with auditors on restatement of its accounts to comply with US accounting practices. The latest extension is with the holders of some $840 million in the bonds in the company's off-balance sheet vehicles, known by the acronym EPIL.
Elan must file its accounts by September 14th or it will trigger a default on its senior loans worth some $640 million.
Elan, once the biggest company by market capitalisation on the Irish stock exchange worth some $22 billion, has shrunk by more than 90 per cent in 18 months due to a US investigation into its accounting practices and setbacks in bringing drugs to market.